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Peer-reviewedCC BYCurrent research in food science

Matrix-controlled iron bioavailability in unrefined whole-pulse low-moisture extrudates.

  • Mursalin Sajib1,2
  • Jason Wiesinger3
  • Hexiang Xie1
  • Karen Cichy4
  • Sharon Hooper5
  • Kevin Howe3
  • Raymond Glahn3
  • Lutz Grossmann1
5 affiliations
  1. 1Department of Food Science, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA.
  2. 2Department of Life Sciences - Food and Nutrition Science, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden.
  3. 3USDA-ARS, Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, Ithaca, NY, USA.
  4. 4USDA-ARS, Sugarbeet and Bean Research Unit, East Lansing, MI, USA.
  5. 5Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA.
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Abstract

Iron deficiency remains one of the most prevalent micronutrient deficiencies globally, disproportionately affecting populations that rely on plant-based diets. Although pulses are widely consumed staple foods and often contain substantial amounts of iron, iron concentration alone is a poor predictor of nutritional value because absorption is strongly constrained by the food matrix after processing these pulses. Here, we show that unrefined pulse composition exerts a dominant influence on cellular iron uptake in extruded foods, often outweighing the effects of total iron concentration and processing method. Using low-moisture extrusion to produce ready-to-eat foods from unrefined pulse flours, we observed wide variation in cellular iron uptake among pulse types despite comparable iron contents, with Caco-2 cell ferritin formation ranging from 0.81 ± 0.04 to 32.17 ± 0.31 ng ferritin/mg cell protein. This variation was most strongly associated with matrix composition: the highest iron uptake occurred when a low level of inhibitory flavonoids coincided with a low phytate-to-iron molar ratio and abundant enhancer flavonoids, whereas a low inhibitor level alone was not sufficient for high iron uptake. Extrusion improved cellular iron uptake only modestly relative to traditional porridge preparation. Together, these findings highlight matrix-controlled bioavailability as a key factor in plant-based iron delivery and identify yellow bean-based puffed snacks as a promising, consumer-friendly strategy for improving dietary iron intake.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{sajib2026matrixcontrolled,
  title = {{Matrix-controlled iron bioavailability in unrefined whole-pulse low-moisture extrudates.}},
  author = {Mursalin Sajib and Jason Wiesinger and Hexiang Xie and Karen Cichy and Sharon Hooper and Kevin Howe and Raymond Glahn and Lutz Grossmann},
  journal = {Current research in food science},
  year = {2026},
  month = sep,
  doi = {10.1016/j.crfs.2026.101589},
  url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42898240},
  note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Matrix-controlled iron bioavailability in unrefined whole-pulse low-moisture extrudates.
AU  - Mursalin Sajib
AU  - Jason Wiesinger
AU  - Hexiang Xie
AU  - Karen Cichy
AU  - Sharon Hooper
AU  - Kevin Howe
AU  - Raymond Glahn
AU  - Lutz Grossmann
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/30
JO  - Current research in food science
DO  - 10.1016/j.crfs.2026.101589
UR  - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42898240
AB  - Iron deficiency remains one of the most prevalent micronutrient deficiencies globally, disproportionately affecting populations that rely on plant-based diets. Although pulses are widely consumed staple foods and often contain substantial amounts of iron, iron concentration alone is a poor predictor of nutritional value because absorption is strongly constrained by the food matrix after processing these pulses. Here, we show that unrefined pulse composition exerts a dominant influence on cellular iron uptake in extruded foods, often outweighing the effects of total iron concentration and processing method. Using low-moisture extrusion to produce ready-to-eat foods from unrefined pulse flours, we observed wide variation in cellular iron uptake among pulse types despite comparable iron contents, with Caco-2 cell ferritin formation ranging from 0.81 ± 0.04 to 32.17 ± 0.31 ng ferritin/mg cell protein. This variation was most strongly associated with matrix composition: the highest iron uptake occurred when a low level of inhibitory flavonoids coincided with a low phytate-to-iron molar ratio and abundant enhancer flavonoids, whereas a low inhibitor level alone was not sufficient for high iron uptake. Extrusion improved cellular iron uptake only modestly relative to traditional porridge preparation. Together, these findings highlight matrix-controlled bioavailability as a key factor in plant-based iron delivery and identify yellow bean-based puffed snacks as a promising, consumer-friendly strategy for improving dietary iron intake.
SN  - 2665-9271
ER  -