Role of quercetin in the physicochemical properties, antioxidant and antiglycation activities of bread

As a natural glycation inhibitor, quercetin was incorporated into bread to develop antiglycative functional food. Quercetin added in the wheat bread flour at 0.05, 0.1, and 0.2% caused a loss of dough elasticity with lower resistance and higher extensibility. It further altered the quality of bread in terms of deceasing bread volume and increasing bread hardness. The antioxidant potential of the bread with quercetin was enhanced in a dose-dependent manner. The antiglycation capacity was assessed according to the ability of the bread to inhibit the formation of advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs) in vitro. Results showed that bread with 0.2% quercetin addition was able to inhibit 46-52% of total AGEs formed during protein glycation. Overall, the results support quercetin as a functional food ingredient in bread system, offering consumers a higher intake of antioxidant and a lower load of AGEs.