Morphology, physico-chemical and functional characteristics of starches from different banana cultivars

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the morphology, physico-chemical, functional and thermal properties of isolated starches from four banana cultivars grown in India. Physico-chemical properties including chemical composition, amylose content, swelling power, solubility, water absorption capacity, syneresis and light transmittance showed significant difference among starches from the four banana cultivars. The morphology of starches from four banana cultivars presented considerable variation when analysed by scanning electron microscopy. SEM observation revealed that starch granules were oval, rod shape, irregular with smooth surfaces which may be affected by genetic variation. Among the four banana cultivars, pasting properties were dominant for poovan cultivar and the pasting parameters were influenced by the content of amylose and amylopectin complexes. Thermal properties showed significant difference among the four banana cultivars and it may be influenced by extraction procedure of starch, distribution of starch granules and amylose/amylopectin complexes (P ≤ 0.05).