Thermal treatment improves nutritional quality of pea seeds (Pisum sativum L.) without reducing their hypocholesterolemic properties.

The effects of isoproteic isoenergetic diets containing raw (RP) or extruded (EP) pea (Pisum sativum, cv. Ballet) seed meal on nutritional performance and serum lipids, amino acids and enzyme levels in growing rats were studied in two 15 d feeding experiments. Food intake and growth were greatly reduced in animals fed unsupplemented RP or EP. Both parameters were improved by addition of amino acids to the diets. Growth, apparent N digestibility, biological value and net protein utilisation values for supplemented (SRP) raw peas were however inferior to those for controls whilst with supplemented (SEP) extruded peas the values were similar to control levels. SRP and SEP also greatly reduced serum total cholesterol, LDL (VLDL) and cholesterol/HDL ratio. This may have been linked to the lower plasma lysine:arginine ratio. SRP and SEP increased kidney and adrenal weights and reduced liver weight. SRP stimulate pancreatic growth but SEP did not. Analysis of serum proteins and enzymes suggested these tissue changes did not lead to chronic disruption to gut or systemic metabolism. Extrusion treatment of peas improved their nutritional quality but did not reduce their hypocholesterolemic properties.