Basic Information - Genetics, Genomics and Breeding of Crop Plants - page 11

Sunflower meal is most efficiently utilized when blended with meal of
soybean for use in rations for dairy and beef cattle, sheep, swine, and poultry.
Nearly all sunflower meal produced in the USA is used by the livestock
feeding industry. However, sunflower protein ingredients derived from
dehulled kernels have been evaluated extensively for use in human food,
both in Europe and in the USA (Lusas 1982). Sunflower flour and protein
concentrates and isolates show promise and are being used to a limited
extent in bakery products, infant formula, meat, and meat extenders.
Sunflower meal develops a greenish color due to the high concentration of
chlorogenic acid that must be removed prior to use in developing products
for human consumption.

1.2.2.3 Tocopherol Composition

Tocopherols are powerful natural fat soluble antioxidants that inhibit lipid
oxidation in foods and biological systems. Since commercial interest in
tocopherols and their antioxidative properties has increased in recent years,
enhancing this component of sunflower oil has become a breeding objective.

-tocopherol (vitamin E) is the principal tocopherol in sunflower oil, usually
representing over 90% of the total tocopherols. High -tocopherol

concentrations make sunflower oil less stable for frying. A partial
substitution of -tocopherol by a tocopherol derivative with greater

antioxidant action would improve the oxidative stability of sunflower oil.
Although sunflower oil stability can be enhanced by decreasing the linoleic
acid concentration, studies of the tocopherol content of sunflower oil showed
that it could be further improved by increasing the proportions of

- and -

tocopherols (Warner 2005). Since -tocopherol is the weakest antioxidant

in vitro, its partial replacement by , , and or other tocopherol forms, is an

important breeding objective.
The tocopherol content and composition of 36 wild Helianthus species
was examined by Velasco et al. (2004a). Tocopherol concentration averaged
328 mg/kg in achenes with an average profile of 99.0%

-tocopherol, 0.7%

- tocopherol. Cultivated sunflower has an average
tocopherol concentration of 669 mg/kg of achenes with 92.4%

-tocopherol, and 0.3%

-tocopherol,

5.6% -tocopherol. The maximum tocopherol content

in any wild population was observed in H . maximiliani with 673 mg/kg.
Unusually high levels of

-tocopherol, and 2.0%

-tocopherol were observed in one population of
H . praecox with 11.2% of the total tocopherols and one population of H .
debilis with 11.8%. Increased

-tocopherol levels were identified in one
population of H . exilis with 7.4% of the total tocopherols and two populations
of H . nuttallii with 11.0 and 14.6%.
Dolde et al. (1999) screened 12 modified sunflower oils for total
tocopherols with values ranging from 534 to 1858 µg/g, with -tocopherol