β-glucan and hull fibre content in oat cultivars grown under different agronomic conditions

Oats (Avena sativa L.) are the focus of a growing interest as a raw material for the production of food with increased nutritional quality. In this contest, particular attention has been given in recent studies to the content of beta-glucan in oat kernel, due to its claimed cholesterol-lowering effects. In the present study, six oat cultivars (five husked and one naked) have been grown in 1999-2000 in 4 replicate trials characterised by two seeding seasons (winter and spring) and two preceding cultures (cereal and leguminous). beta-glucan content was determined on a sample of each replication, and ANOVA analysis was performed on both agronomic and chemical data. The results indicated that the beta-glucan content of the kernel is affected by agronomic factors. The content and the composition of the fibre fractions in hulls has also been determined.