Cereal Chem 62:1-5   |  VIEW ARTICLE

Examination of the Mobilization of Storage Proteins of Wheat Kernels During Germination by High-Performance Reversed-Phase and Gel Permeation Chromatography.

J. E. Kruger and B. A. Marchylo. Copyright 1985 by the American Association of Cereal Chemists, Inc. 

High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) in the gel permeation and reversed-phase modes was used to monitor changes in storage proteins of five wheat cultivars during germination. In the gel permeation mode, 0.1M sodium phosphate buffer, pH 7.0, containing 2% SDS was used as an extractant and buffer solvent. Minimal changes occurred in the extractable storage proteins, and the major observable change was the formation of low-molecular weight species. In the reversed-phase mode, proteins extractable with 50% 1-propanol, 1% acetic acid, and 4% dithiothreitol had identical protein patterns on an Ultrapore RPSC column at any stage of germination. This indicates that proteolytic degradation of storage proteins must be extremely rapid. The similarity of chromatographic profiles from sound and germinated wheat extracts in the reversed-phase mode suggests that using this technique, the presence of sprout- damaged wheat would not complicate cultivar identification.