title: Safety assessment of consumption of glabrous canary seed (Phalaris canariensis L.) in rats.
abstract: Canary seed is a nutrient-rich cereal grain; however, it has not been used in human food in part due to concerns regarding safety of consumption. Glabrous or hairless canary seed has potential human food use as trichomes are absent. The objective of the oral feeding studies reported here was to assess the safety of yellow and brown glabrous canary seed cultivars as human cereal foods. The first study was a 90-day rat oral toxicity study, which compared the effects of diets containing 50% of either brown dehulled glabrous, brown hulled glabrous, or brown hulled pubescent (hairy) hulled canary seed to a diet containing 50% wheat. No significant adverse effects were observed. In a 28-day and a 90-day study rats were fed yellow or brown glabrous canary seed groats in the AIN-76 diet at concentrations levels of 2.5%, 5% and 10%. The NOAELs in 90-day study were 5.15 g/kg/d and 5.23 g/kg/d for yellow and brown canary seed groats. Consumption of canary seed was associated with reduced incidence and severity of liver lipidosis as compared to controls. The combined results of these studies clearly demonstrate the safety of consumption of glabrous canary seed, and support its use as a human cereal grain.
authors.affiliation: BMagnuson Consulting, Oakville, ON L6J2C8, Canada. Electronic address: b.magnuson@utoronto.ca.
authors.forename: B A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Magnuson
authors.affiliation: The Pathfinders Research & Management Ltd, Saskatoon, SK S7N0S5, Canada.
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Patterson
authors.affiliation: Crop Development Centre, Department of Plant Sciences, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK S7N5A8, Canada.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hucl
authors.affiliation: Canadian International Grains Institute, Winnipeg, MB R3C3G7, Canada.
authors.forename: R W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Newkirk
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal and Poultry Science, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK S7NA8, Canada.
authors.forename: J I
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: Ram
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal and Poultry Science, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK S7NA8, Canada.
authors.forename: H L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Classen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D059022:Food Safety; D008297:Male; D031783:Phalaris / Q000196:embryology*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012639:Seeds / Q000633:toxicity*
keywords: (large unstained cells); A/G; ALP; ALT; AME; AST; BUN; CK; Canary seed; Dietary; F; Glabrous; Hairless; Hb; Hct; LUC; M; MCH; MCHC; MCV; RBC; Safety; Toxicology; WBC; alanine aminotansferase; albumin:globulin ratio; alkaline phosphatase; apparent metabolizable energy; aspartate aminotransferase; blood urea nitrogen; creatine kinase; female; hematocrit; hemoglobin; male; mean corpuscular hemoglobin; mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration; mean corpuscular volume; red blood cell count; white blood cell count