Research Progress on Functional Constituents and Biological Activities of Highland Barley

Highland Barley(Hordeum vulgare L. var. nudum Hook. F.)is a nutritious gramineous plant with a long history of eating. In addition to its high nutritional value,modern research has shown that Highland Barley is rich in functional factors such as β-glucan,polyphenols,etc.,which have antioxidant,anti-tumor,hypoglycemic,anti-cardiovascular diseases and other biological activities. The prospects of its applications are board in food,heath,and the related industries,which has been widely concerned by scholars at home and abroad. This paper summarizes the cultivated species and nutritional quality of Highland Barley,in order to provide reference and basis for the research and development on function and biological activity of Highland Barley. At the same time,the achievements of the functional research on highland barley,such as antioxidant,hypoglycemia,weight loss,blood lipid reduction,anti-atherosclerosis,preventing platelet aggregation,immune regulation,are mainly summarized,in order to provide theoretical basis for the development of functional food,and then help to prevent and assist on treating chronic diseases.