13

References ............................................................................................................213

Worldwide, fructans are important components in human nutrition, with slight differences due to geographic and cultural peculiarities. Sprouts of chicory; tubers of Jerusalem artichoke; globes of artichoke, onion, leek, garlic; and sprouts of asparagus are used as vegetables in different ways of preparation. Onion, garlic, and chives are used as spices or taste-providing components in many kinds of food. All the listed cultivars contain fructans in different amounts as reserve carbohydrate. Another source of fructans are caryopses of grasses and flours of wheat, rye, oat, and barley, which contain between 1 and 7% fructans, depending on the degree of fine milling and applied technological processing. As the human intestinal tract lacks enzymes that depolymerize fructans, their metabolic processing is rather low, and thus they may be attributed as dietary fiber materials. Due to this fact, food manufacturers are

showing an increased interest in fructans, which has resulted in increasing numbers of quality profiles being developed and tested, with particular focus on functional food. A professional qualification of these profiles needs comprehensive information about potential sources and details about biosynthesis pathways and molecular characteristics.