National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS)
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PRINT ISSN : 2319-7692
Online ISSN : 2319-7706 Issues : 12 per year Publisher : Excellent Publishers Email : editorijcmas@gmail.com / submit@ijcmas.com Editor-in-chief: Dr.M.Prakash Index Copernicus ICV 2018: 95.39 NAAS RATING 2020: 5.38 |
Phytin, or myo-inositol hexakisphosphate (InsP6), is stored form of phosphorus (P) seeds of cereals and legumes. It has a strong tendency to chelate metallic cations Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn and Zn and form insoluble complexes which renders them unavailable to animals or humans fed on seed diet. The undigested P is released in excreta and spreads as manure into the soil causing eutrophication of water bodies also due to run off. In maize (Zea mays) 90% of the phytin occurs in the germ portion of the kernel, while in wheat and rice it is stored in aleurone layers of the kernel and the outer bran and acts as anti nutritional factor. Apart from reducing the dietary nutritional value, phytin plays several positive roles in metabolism, viz., protein and carbohydrate metabolism, responding to oxidative stress, draught tolerance by inducing stomatal closure, prevents senescence and apoptosis, regulates phosphate homeostasis and acts as shelter factor for maturing embryo in the seeds. Application of phytin is also reported in paper preservation, meat preservation, body metabolism and also cancer therapy. Phytin also has probable role in disease resistance in plants; however, much information is not available. Inspite of so many positive roles for plants, the economic value of feed and food is greatly reduced due to the anti nutritional attribute of the seed phytin. In this review we discuss the approaches and challenges to overcome the menace of phytin in food and feed to improve bioavailability of minerals and maintaining seed phytin to desired levels for normal plant metabolism.
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