Foam index as a surrogate measure of protein content: an exploratory and inexpensive laboratory-free tool for students
- P 495-504
An easily executable method to track nutritive potential of raw food grains at home is described here. Blanching the soaked grains with the boiled supernatant aided the release of protein into the supernatant which in-turn correlated with the protein content of the grains analysed in this study. When agitated, the supernatant generated stable froth, measured as foam index (FI). When compared with standard protein estimation methodologies (ultra-violet absorption and Folin–Lowry), both the percentage volume of the water absorbed (VA) and FI emerged as potential quantitative parameters. Correlation analyses using multiple grains of varying protein content indicated that VA and FI could serve as laboratory-free surrogate measures of protein content, and therefore a reflection of their nutritional value. To eliminate the possibility of surfactant-mediated foam, an ink-based ‘dye diffusion test’ was developed, wherein the dye was significantly retarded by protein foam. The simplicity of these assays were tested as a part of learning modules, successfully executed even by school students (12–15 years old). Qualitatively, it engaged them in more authentic scientific inquiry in a way that was meaningfully associated with their daily lives. We propose that this technique creates opportunities for participation in citizen science, and can help address questions about cultivar growth in different climatic conditions when analysed temporally in a large networked format.
Froth, grains protein estimation home lab nutrition