Wheatgrass compound beats vitamin C as an antioxidant

Younger wheat contains flavonoids that outperform vitamin C in combating cell damage, and these antioxidants can actually prolong the lifespan of laboratory animals.

Chinese researchers screening 228 modern wheat varieties found that in laboratory tests, two specific wheatgrass flavonoids and lutein had twice the antioxidant capacity of vitamin C. More notable: Wheatgrass has 20 times more flavonoids than mature wheat pellets, making Young Shooting an effective source of health-promoting compounds.

These findings are published in seed biology, challenging assumptions about where to find the most powerful natural antioxidants and suggest that agricultural breeding programs can significantly increase the nutritional value of this increasingly popular superfood.

Nature’s antioxidants

A research team from China Agricultural University conducted three rigorous antioxidant tests (ABTS, DPPH and FRAP analysis) to process the performance of vitamin C, one of the most widely used antioxidant supplements. The result is eye-opening.

In the ABTS test, all four major wheatgrass flavonoids showed excellent antioxidant activity against vitamin C. However, in the more stringent DPPH analysis, isooxidants and lutein became clear champions, in which the free radical shedding power of vitamin C is approximately the free radical power of vitamin C.

Perhaps most important is nutrition, this study reveals a huge difference between wheat developmental stages:

• Wheatgrass contains ~675 ng/g of flavonoids (new weight)
• Ripe wheat pellets contain only ~35 ng/g (dry weight)
• This means that the flavonoid concentration is nearly 20 times
• Differences indicate the best time to harvest to achieve maximum antioxidant benefits

Longer lifespan on wheatgrass

To test whether these laboratory antioxidant activities translate into real biological benefits, the researchers fed wheatgrass flavonoid extracts into fruit fruit flies, a standard model for aging studies. The results reveal promise and complexity.

Male flies fed with 1 mM wheatgrass flavonoid extract had significantly longer lifespan than controls, which showed what the researchers called “dose-dependent and gender-specific” lifespan. However, female flies have no lifespan benefits and are actually harmful to males at higher concentrations.

Gene expression analysis of treated flies reveals changes in sperm competition pathways and energy metabolism – the life-extended benefits may work through male-specific biological mechanisms involving cellular energy production and absorption of vitamins.

Designer wheat grass

This study identified specific wheat varieties with a special flavonoid spectrum. Compared with the standard varieties, there are three variants (Xiaoyan 269, Suixuan 101 and Zhoumai 30) that become flavonoids with significantly higher levels of beneficial paclitaxel and aphrodisiol compounds.

Using detailed metabolite analysis, the researchers mapped ten major flavonoid compounds in wheatgrass and found that modifications were largely based on three core molecules: lueseolin, apigenin and chrysoeriol. This chemical blueprint can guide breeding programs to develop specialized wheatgrass varieties specifically targeted at specific health applications.

The team also found that the use of jasmonic acid treatment, a natural phytohormone that activates defensive compounds, can increase flavonoid production by 30%. Gene expression analysis confirmed that this treatment significantly upregulates key enzymes, including phenylalanine lyase and thalone synthetase, in the flavonoid biosynthesis pathway.

These findings open up agricultural breeding and post-harvest treatment strategies to maximize the nutritional value of wheatgrass. Since the study found no correlation between flavonoid content and agronomic traits such as grain yield, farmers may grow highly oxidative wheatgrass varieties without sacrificing crop productivity.

This study provides scientific evidence for wheatgrass’ reputation as a superfood, while revealing specific strategies to make it more nutritious, which can allow consumers to obtain antioxidants that exceed vitamin C in their cell protection effects.

Related