Influence of Cold Plasma in Accelerating the Germination and Nutrient Composition of Foxtail Millet (Setaria italica L.)

Cold plasma (CP) has been used to accelerate seed germination. During this study, foxtail millet was exposed to low pressure air plasma at 1 kV and 2 kV for 1, 3, and 5 min, and its germination characteristics and nutrient composition were studied. Among the applied treatment conditions, 2 kV for 3 min showed a higher germination percentage of 84.00%, followed by 1 kV for 5 min with 77.33% after 48 h. In addition, a significant increase in other germination characteristics, such as germination speed, germination potential, seed length, and seed vigour indices I and II, was observed after CP exposure. Optical emission spectroscopy analysis asserted that reactive species generated during CP generation are responsible for hastening the foxtail millet germination through seed surface modification. Further, the CP exposure increased the soluble protein content of foxtail millet up to 19.00 g/100 g, γ-amino butyric acid content up to 62.27 mg/100 g, and reduced phytic acid and tannins to 1.1 mg/g and 0.8 mg/100 g, respectively, through germination. This research explores the potency of cold plasma in accelerating foxtail millet germination and enhancing its nutritional bioavailability.