Wheat bran dietary fibre‐induced changes in gluten aggregation and conformation in a dough system

Summary This study was conducted to determine the effect of wheat bran dietary fibre (WBDF) on aggregation and conformational changes of gluten in fermented and unfermented dough systems. The results revealed that WBDF has an advantage in maintaining the content of glutenin macropolymer (GMP) in the fermentation process. The analysis of the molecular weight distribution showed decreased content of larger polymeric proteins (LPPs). At the same WBDF level, after fermentation, the content of larger polymeric proteins (SPPs) increased, likely due to the polymerisation of the gliadins. Additionally, fluorescence spectroscopy and surface hydrophobicity analysis revealed that, in fermented dough, with the increase of WBDF content, the protein hydrophobicity significantly increased from 6.56 to 9.43 ( P < 0.05). Hydrophobic interactions contributed to the macromolecular unfolding and/or aggregation of gluten. Also, WBDF may induce changes in dough properties by inducing conformational changes in the gluten protein.