Ternary interactions of polyphenols, polysaccharides, and gluten proteins: molecular mechanisms and strategic regulation of flour-based product quality: a review.

Abstract

As a major staple, wheat supplies 18% of global dietary energy and 19% of protein. Wheat flour-based foods constitute complex matrices wherein gluten, starch, non-starch polysaccharides, polyphenols, and water undergo dynamic interactions during sequential processing. Integrating findings from binary and ternary systems, this comprehensive review identifies hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interactions, water competition, macromolecular crowding, and covalent cross-linking as key driving mechanisms. Depending on formulation, these interactions govern gluten network development, starch transitions, and water mobility, thereby shaping product volume, texture, sensory quality, and glycemic response. Reversible association dominates mixing, thermal aggregation dictates baking, and moisture migration coupled with retrogradation governs storage stability. Overall, non-covalent, water-mediated effects predominate over the formation of distinct ternary complexes in intact dough. This review establishes a structure-processing-quality framework linking molecular-level interactions across sequential processing stages to the macroscopic quality and nutritional functionality of flour-based foods.