Effect of Germination on Mineral Content Changes in Brown Rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Minerals are the essential micronutrients for human health. Brown rice is a whole-grain food rich in minerals, with its bran portion limiting the application of minerals. In the present study, the changes in the contents of 23 different minerals (Na, Mg, K, Ca, B, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Se, Sb, Ba, Li, Al, As, Cd, Sn, Hg, and Pb) in brown rice were evaluated during 17, 24, 30, 35, and 48 h of germination. The results showed that germination was associated with the decreased contents of Pb, Cd, As, Al, Li, Ba, Fe, Cr, Co, V, and Hg, and the increased content of Na in brown rice (p < 0.05). In contrast, this process was not significantly influential on the contents of Mg, K, Ca, B, Ni, Cu, Zn, Se, Sn, Sb, and Mn (p > 0.05). In addition, significant correlations were found among most of the mineral contents. Furthermore, according to the principal component analysis, three principal components of the different mineral contents were extracted to explain 96.60% of the cumulative variances. In summary, these findings demonstrated that germination represented a feasible approach to regulating and controlling the distribution of the mineral elements in brown rice, optimizing the levels of the mineral contents, and thus reducing the potential health risks.