Location: Food Processing and Sensory Quality Research
Project Number: 6054-30600-008-000-D
Project Type: In-House Appropriated
Start Date: Jun 13, 2025
End Date: Jun 12, 2030
Objective:
Objective 1: Investigation of the anticancer properties of rice constituents.
Objective 2: Utilization of rice by-products.
Objective 3: Improve utilization of rice by identification of the nutritional benefits.
Approach:
In 2022, approximately 20 million new cancer cases were diagnosed globally, and 9.7 million people died. The high incidence of cancer has led to increased research to prevent and treat cancer. Breast cancer is ranked as the one of the top three malignancies worldwide and is the most recurrent type of cancer in women. While progress has been made on new cancer drug therapies, more research is needed to discover and characterize the anticancer effects of natural compounds found in rice and other cereal grains. Rice secondary metabolites, such as phytoalexins and polyphenols have demonstrated anti-cancer properties. They are concentrated in the bran layer. Rice milling separates the bran and creates low-value by-products that include broken rice, bran, and hulls (husks). Also, the production of white rice removes most of the vitamins that are concentrated in the bran layer. New technologies for converting rice and rice by-products into high value products will be developed to target three objectives: 1) Characterizing rice constituents’ ability to inhibit cancer, 2) utilizing rice by-products to create value-added foods, and 3) increase the utilization of rice by identification of the nutritional benefits. Research will examine the effects of different processing treatments on rice that enhance bioactive components, including polyphenols, vitamins B and E, and resistant starch. Additionally, different rice by-products will be utilized as a source of unique functional foods. Utilization of broken rice, rice bran, and hulls will create value-added products. Further research will focus on characterization of the nutritional benefits of rice before and after processing into foods, including the effect of parboiling rice before milling to improve the nutritional value. Extruded Ready-To-Eat (RTE) snacks high in nutritional rice by-products will be developed. Sensory evaluation will be used to optimize RTE snacks for consumer acceptance for healthful products. This research will increase the economic potential of rice for U.S. rice farmers, the rice processing industry, and expand the manufacture of health-promoting rice foods.