Combined treatment of rice bran through solid-state fermentation and enzymes: Impact of nutritional, physicochemical, and rheological properties and its applications in functional bread production

Background : Rice bran is a major by-product produced after milling rice kernels and is obtained in large quantities annually. Rice bran is a notable source of dietary fibers, minerals, vitamins, and bioactive compounds. Methods : The current study aimed to treat rice bran using individual and combination treatments of enzymes and fermentation to enhance its nutritional and physicochemical characteristics for application in functional pan bread production. Results : The findings indicated that the treatment of rice bran with the xylanase- Lactobacillus plantarum and baker’s yeast combination was found to be the most effective treatment with high nutritional values, phenolic content, antioxidant activity, water-extractable arabinoxylans, and phytic acid degradation compared to the individual treatments. Furthermore, wheat flour substituted with 5% and 10% treated rice bran improved the rheological properties of pan bread dough and increased the nutritional value, phenolic content, antioxidant activity, and freshness of pan bread. Conclusions : All results highlighted that solid-state fermentation (by L. plantarum and baker’s yeast) combined with xylanase can improve the nutritional and functional properties of rice bran and has a synergistic effect on the dough rheology and nutritional and quality characteristics of pan bread.