Vegetable proteins are an integral part of infant weaning diets in Latin America. Protein quality in plant-based products, however, is constrained by amino acid composition and intrinsically present antinutritional factors. The goal of this study was to improve bean protein quality by utilizing fermentation and germination processing. The objectives were to determine if protein quality, as measured by Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) approved True Protein Digestibility (TPD) and Protein Digestibility-Corrected Amino Acid Scores (PDCAAS), of formulated bean-based weaning products could be improved upon fermentation and germination and if protein quality could be further improved when processed beans were combined with cooked rice. Results showed that the highest TPD and PDCAAS values were obtained for cooked germinated beans combined with rice. The TPD values for products ranged from 80 to 91%, and the PDCAAS values were 0.38-0.51. There was no significant increase (P < 0.05) of either TPD or PDCAAS values upon fermentation. Germination increased TPD of cooked bean products; this increase was not, however, accompanied by an increase in PDCAAS. When combined with rice, the PDCAAS values for all bean products improved significantly, thus supporting the concept of cereal-legume complementation. In conclusion, this study showed the range of PDCAAS in processed black bean and bean-rice infant weaning food products. The potential for incorporation of these products into the diets of weaning age Latin American children would, however, be confirmed only after validation with growth or metabolic balance studies in human infants.

The protein nutritional quality of cereal/legume mixtures developed with theoretically optimal nutrient profiles was assessed by determining the indices; Protein Efficiency Ratio (PER), Net Protein Ratio (NPR) and Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score (PDCAAS). Two formulations (generated by computer-assisted successive approximation) were prepared with 45-50% maize, 35-40% cowpeas, and either peanuts or soybeans to improve the amino acid balance and to raise the energy level of the diet. Isonitrogenous diets prepared from these weaning formulations and casein were fed to 21-28 day old Sprague Dawley rats according to the Official PER protocol. Acceptable PERs of 2.1-2.4 were obtained for the diets when casein was adjusted to 2.5. The True Protein Digestibility of these food formulations ranged from 87.4-92.1% (that of casein was 96.4%) and the NPR ranged from 3.0-3.3; NPR of the casein diet was 3.5. PDCAAS for the formulations ranged from 0.72-0.82.

The chemical composition and nutritional value of two wild edible mushroom species (Tricholoma portentosum and Tricholoma terreum) from the northwest of Spain were determined. Content of dietary fibre was high (approx. 45% of dry matter) in both species. Protein content of both species was very similar and close to 16% of dry weight. Essential amino acids accounted for 61.8 and 63.3% of total amino acid contents of Tricholoma portentosum and Tricholoma terreum, respectively. Leucine, isoleucine and tryptophan were the limiting amino acids in both species. The corrected amino acid scores (PDCAAS) of Tricholoma portentosum and Tricholoma terreum proteins were low compared with those of casein, egg white and beef but higher than those of many vegetable proteins. Content of fat was low (5.7% for Tricholoma portentosum and 6.6% for Tricholoma terreum) in both species, with oleic and linoleic acids accounting for more than 75% of total fatty acids.