Corn (Zea mays L.) provides a major source of calories for human consumption and therefore, the nutritional components of corn have a large impact on human health. For example, corn kernels contain antioxidants, such as polyphenols (including anthocyanins and other flavonoids) and carotenoids. Such compounds represent useful targets for biofortification breeding. In this study, we used 34 corn inbred lines from three different regions (East Asia, Southern Asia, and subtropical regions) and 11 F1 hybrids derived from the inbreds to investigate antioxidant activity in yellow corn. We compared different methods for measuring antioxidant activity to test their consistency and to determine whether color could be used as an indicator of antioxidant activity. We also measured carotenoid levels in yellow corn. No difference in antioxidant activity was detected between inbred corn lines from temperate vs. tropical regions. We determined that carotenoid is a major contributor to antioxidant activity in yellow corn and that kernel color, especially yellowness, could be used as an indicator of antioxidant activity in yellow corn. These findings lay the foundation for the biofortification of yellow corn by providing information about the correlations among kernel color, carotenoid contents, and antioxidant activity and by identifying an easy method to assess antioxidant activity in yellow corn.

中文翻译：

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测量来自三个不同地理区域的黄玉米 (Zea mays L.) 近交系的抗氧化活性

玉米 (Zea mays L.) 是人类消费热量的主要来源，因此，玉米的营养成分对人类健康有很大影响。例如，玉米粒含有抗氧化剂，如多酚（包括花青素和其他类黄酮）和类胡萝卜素。这些化合物代表了生物强化育种的有用目标。在这项研究中，我们使用来自三个不同地区（东亚、南亚和亚热带地区）的 34 个玉米自交系和来自自交系的 11 个 F1 杂种来研究黄玉米的抗氧化活性。我们比较了测量抗氧化活性的不同方法，以测试它们的一致性并确定颜色是否可以用作抗氧化活性的指标。我们还测量了黄玉米中的类胡萝卜素水平。在来自温带和热带地区的自交玉米品系之间没有检测到抗氧化活性的差异。我们确定类胡萝卜素是黄玉米抗氧化活性的主要贡献者，并且籽粒颜色，尤其是黄色，可用作黄玉米抗氧化活性的指标。这些发现通过提供有关籽粒颜色、类胡萝卜素含量和抗氧化活性之间相关性的信息，并确定一种评估黄玉米抗氧化活性的简单方法，为黄玉米的生物强化奠定了基础。可作为黄玉米抗氧化活性的指标。这些发现通过提供有关籽粒颜色、类胡萝卜素含量和抗氧化活性之间相关性的信息，并确定一种评估黄玉米抗氧化活性的简单方法，为黄玉米的生物强化奠定了基础。可作为黄玉米抗氧化活性的指标。这些发现通过提供有关籽粒颜色、类胡萝卜素含量和抗氧化活性之间相关性的信息，并确定一种评估黄玉米抗氧化活性的简单方法，为黄玉米的生物强化奠定了基础。