Australian produced pulse grains are exported worldwide, predominantly to developing countries where severe essential mineral deficiencies putatively subsist. An in vitro digestion model that simulates human gastric, intestinal and colonic digestion and fermentation, was used to examine the bioaccessibility of Fe, Mg, K, Ca, P, Zn, Mn, and Cu in commercially available cultivars of Australian field pea, lentil, and sweet lupin. The hull and dehulled seeds were prepared following a traditional cooking method, and quantities of bioaccessible minerals were assessed at each stage of in vitro digestion using ICP-OES elemental analyses. Results revealed that dehulled field pea (100 g dry weight) had the highest bioaccessible quantity of Fe (2.44 ± 0.73 mg), K (717.10 ± 56.66 mg), P (272.88 ± 9.30 mg), Zn (1.72.028 ± 0.28 mg), and Cu (0.41 ± 0.02 mg). Dehulled lupin was the best source of Mg (138.62 ± 1.53 mg) and Mn (1.28 ± 0.0.06 mg), and lentil hull showed the greatest Ca bioaccessible quantity (116.33 ± 16.73 mg/100 g dry weight). Additionally, the fed state digestion (11.7 mg bile/mL sample) increased the bioaccessibility of all elements significantly (P < 0.05) compared to fasted (1.95 mg bile/mL sample), except for Zn and Mn in lupin and lentils. These results demonstrated that dehulled seeds possess higher mineral bioaccessibility on a percentage basis compared with hulls, and that the fed state of in vitro digestion generally improved the mineral solubility significantly (P < 0.05). PRACTICAL APPLICATION: This research aimed to assess the prospective biological accessibility of various essential elements in three commercially available Australian pulses. Results of the study provided an insight into the contents of essential minerals in Australian pulses and illustrated the impact of traditional cooking of dehulled pulses on these minerals bioaccessibility. These findings will provide the consumers with information about some nutritional aspects of major Australian pulses.
Keywords: bioaccessibility; essential minerals; in vitro gastrointestinal digestion; legumes; pulses.
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