Mineral Compositions of Korean Wheat Cultivars

Twenty-nine Korean wheat cultivars were analyzed for 8 important minerals (Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn, Ca, K, Mg and P) using Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrometry (ICP-AES). A hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) was applied to classify wheat cultivars, which has a similarity in mineral compositions. The concentration ranges of the micro-minerals Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn: 0.12~0.71 mg/100 g, 2.89~5.89 mg/100 g, 1.65~4.48 mg/100 g, and 2.58~6.68 mg/100 g, respectively. The content ranges of the macro-minerals Ca, K, Mg and P: 31.3~46.3 mg/100 g, 288.2~383.3 mg/100 g, 113.6~168.6 mg/100 g, and 286.2~416.5 mg/100 g, respectively. The HCA grouped 6 clusters from all wheat samples and a significant variance was observed in the mineral composition of each group. Among the 6 clusters, the second group was high in Fe and Ca, whereas the fourth group had high Cu, Mn and K concentrations; the fifth cluster was high in Zn, Mg and P. The variation in mineral compositions in Korean wheat cultivars can be used in the wheat breeding program to develop a new wheat cultivar with high mineral content, thus to improve the nutritional profile of wheat grains.