Chestnut Starch Research Articles

Insights into the multiscale structure and thermal characteristics of chestnut starch

This study compared the multiscale structure of ten chestnut starches in cultivars of different origins and further investigated the correlation between amylose content, amylopectin chain length distribution (CLD), Fourier transform-infrared (FTIR) characteristics, Raman spectra, X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns and thermal properties. The amylose content ranged from 20.9 % to 29.5 %. Amylopectin chain length showed a bimodal distribution, and the proportion of A, B1, B2 and B3 chains was 25.8–28.2 %, 42.6–45.1 %, 18.2–25.3 % and 6.4–10.3 %, respectively. Most samples exhibited a C-type crystal structure, while the relative crystallinity ranged from 56.9 % to 62.3 %. Significant differences were observed in structural parameters of short-range molecular order and double helical structure of infrared spectra, full width of half-maximum at 480 cm−1 and relative area (480/865 cm−1) of Raman spectra. Amylose content was positively correlated with gelatinization temperature. Reduced amylose content and presence of long chains of amylopectin enhanced crystallization. However, no correlation was found between amylopectin CLD and thermal properties. The results provide useful information for understanding the structure-property correlation of starch.

Insight into the retardation of retrogradation of chestnut starch by heat-moisture treatment with flavonoids

With the concern of rapid retrogradation of chestnut starch, the effect of heat-moisture treatment (HMT) with flavonoids on the retrogradation of chestnut starch was studied. The retrogradation of starch could be inhibited by HMT combined with flavonoid addition up to 65.88%. Flavonoids with different structures showed significant differences in retarding retrogradation, which followed the order of epicatechin>epicatechin gallate>oligmeric proanthocyanidins. Structural analysis, infrared spectra and theoretical calculations showed that hydrogen bond interactions between starch and flavonoids retarded starch retrogradation by inhibiting the aggregation of starch molecules to form crystalline and aggregation structures. The retarding effect of flavonoids was related to their steric hindrance, flexibility and phenolic hydroxyl number. Epicatechin with minor steric hindrance and more flexibility favored its hydrogen bond interactions with starch, leading to the best retardation effect of starch retrogradation. This study would provide a theoretical and experimental basis for creating high-quality chestnut products.

Effect of Catechin on the Retrogradation and Structural Properties of Chestnut Starch

AbstractCatechin (EC) is a natural plant extract and has great health benefits. EC interacts with the starch isolated from Chinese chestnut to form complexes. The effect of EC addition on the structure and retrogradation properties of chestnut starch (CS) is investigated in this study. Compared with CS, when the addition of EC is 10%, the peak viscosity (PV), trough viscosity(TV), and setback (SB) of CS decreased by 45.65%, 39.95%, and 47.38% (2185.62, 922.35, and 445.42 cp), respectively. Thermogravimetric shows that the EC addition can decrease the degradation temperature of starch. Scanning electron microscope shows that EC can cause a looser gel structure of CS. The results of Fourier transform infrared show that the absorption peak of the complex at 3000–3600 cm−1 is enhanced to a high wavenumber. X‐ray diffraction results in a reduction in the relative crystallinity with the increase of EC addition. In summary, the overall results suggest CS interacted with EC to form the non‐inclusive complex, resulting in changes in starch structure. These results indicate that EC is a promising ingredient to restrain the retrogradation of starchy food and provides new insights for the application of other starch and polyphenols.

Effects of Endogenous Polyphenols in Acorn (Quercus wutaishanica Blume) Kernels on the Physicochemical Properties of Starch

AbstractThe effects of endogenous polyphenols in acorn kernels on granule morphology, crystal properties, and in vitro digestibility of starch are investigated. The granule surface smoothness, relative crystallinity, short‐range molecular order, and starch hydrolysis rate increase after the removal of polyphenols from acorn flour. With the addition of polyphenol extracts, the hydrolysis rates of acorn, corn, potato, and chestnut starches are all reduced, and the free‐polyphenol extract shows higher inhibitory activity than the bound‐polyphenol extract. These results are expected to be helpful for understanding the low digestibility of starch in acorn kernels, which is attributed to the inhibitory effects of polyphenols on the activities of α‐amylase and α‐glucosidase, but not the increase of long and short‐range molecular orders of starch.

Development of Starch Nanoparticle from Mango Kernel in Comparison with Cereal, Tuber, and Legume Starch Nanoparticles: Characterization and Cytotoxicity

AbstractStarch nanoparticles (SNPs) are developed from mango kernel starch and are compared with wheat, potato, mungbean, and water chestnut starch nanoparticles. The synthesized SNPs are investigated for their thermal properties, particle size, degree of relative crystallinity and cytotoxicity. The average particle size of SNPs from different botanical sources range from 100 to 514 nm. Mango kernel starch nanoparticles show the highest particle size. Starch nanoparticles from all botanical sources show X‐ray diffraction (XRD) patterns similar to their native counterpart starches. SNPs from wheat, mango kernel, and water chestnut show A‐type XRD patterns but the relative crystallinity of SNPs is observed to be higher as compared to native starches. From the thermogravimetric analysis, it is observed that degradation temperature for 10% loss weight vary significantly. The study reveals that mango kernel SNPs show good biocompatibility with human HeLa cell lines as compared to all other sources except water chestnut SNPs.

Influence of Phosphorylation and Acetylation on Structural, Physicochemical and Functional Properties of Chestnut Starch.

Chestnut is popular worldwide for its unique flavor, high eating quality and nutrition. Here, we evaluated the influence of phosphorylation and acetylation on the structural, physicochemical and functional properties of chestnut starch. Scanning electron micrographs showed the agglomeration of starch granules and the appearance of numerous dents on the starch granule surface under phosphorylation and acetylation. X-ray diffractograms confirmed that the modification treatments did not affect the C-type crystal pattern, but reduced the relative crystallinity of the chestnut starch, particularly phosphorylation. Moreover, modification improved the paste transparency of the starch. Differential scanning calorimeter analysis revealed that the gelatinization temperature and enthalpy of the starch decreased with the increasing substitution degree, particularly in phosphorylated starch. The Rapid Visco Analyser analysis demonstrated that phosphorylation could greatly improve the pasting properties of chestnut starch. In addition, phosphorylated and acetylated starch had a smaller amount of slowly digested starch and a larger amount of resistant starch relative to native chestnut starch. In conclusion, the functional and physicochemical properties of chestnut starch can be significantly improved through phosphorylation and acetylation, demonstrating its great application potential as a food additive.

Improvement of Properties of Chestnut Starch Gels Using Dual Effects: Combination of the Mesona chinensis Benth Polysaccharide and Sodium Chloride

In this study, chestnut starch (CS) and Mesona chinensis Benth polysaccharide (MCP) were extracted from chestnut and M. chinensis Benth, respectively. The effects of MCP and NaCl on the physicochemical and morphological properties of MCP-modified CS gels and the stability of NaCl-modified CS-MCP gels during gelatinization were evaluated. The results showed that the pasting viscosity and viscoelasticity of CS increased with increasing MCP and NaCl. With the addition of MCP and NaCl, the thermal stability of CS became higher. The Fourier transform infrared spectra results showed that no covalent interactions were formed between CS and MCP, and low-field nuclear magnetic resonance confirmed that MCP and NaCl reduced the spin relaxation time of CS. Furthermore, MCP and NaCl improved the microstructure of gels, and MCP made it regular. These results indicated that MCP and NaCl could be used as an additive for improving gel properties, which would improve their potential applications and provide important information for the development of starch-based food.

Dry heat treatment induced the gelatinization, rheology and gel properties changes of chestnut starch

The effects of continuous dry heat treatment (CT) and repeated dry heat treatment (RT) on gel and structural properties of chestnut starch (CS) were investigated. CT and RT both reduced the swelling degree of starch and showed significant variations in pasting viscosity, viscoelasticity, gel strength and hardness varying from high to low after dry heat treatment, and CT was lower than that of RT. Neither dry heat treatment nor gelatinization produced new functional groups, and both reduced short-range ordered degree. There were significant decrease in spin-spin relaxation time (T2) with dry heat treatment (CT and RT), which made the starch in the samples closely combine with water. These results are helpful to better understand the changes of physicochemical properties of starch gel products during dry heat treatment and provide some theoretical references for the application of CS in food industry.

Structural and functional properties of chestnut starch based on high-pressure homogenization

This study aimed to investigate the effect of high-pressure homogenization (HPH) with different pressures, cycles, and starch concentrations on the functional and structural characteristics of chestnut starch. Results showed that the structures of the subcrystalline zone and amorphous region could be destroyed by increasing the pressure for 1 cycle, leading to improved functional properties. Compared with the untreated, the solubility and swelling power of chestnut starch were significantly enhanced by approximately 53.01–86.02% and 64.54–79.50%, the aging value was 48.62–99.00% lower than the original starch, and the transparency increased by 8.55–25.51%. Furthermore, as the cycles increased, the crystal zone structure of starch was damaged. The crystallinity significantly decreased by 28.66–45.60%, compared with the original starch, with particle distribution tending to be uneven and the average particle size decreased by 17.50–90.02%. Besides, solubility, swelling power and transparency could be improved by increasing concentration during HPH.

Synergistic effect of extrusion and polyphenol molecular interaction on the short/long-term retrogradation properties of chestnut starch

The retrogradation properties of starch are closely related to the processing quality of starch-based foods. In this study, the synergistic effects of extrusion and the presence of polyphenols on the water distribution, rheological properties and short-term (1 day)/long-term (21 day) retrogradation of chestnut starch paste were investigated. Post extrusion complexation with catechins (CC)/proanthocyanidins (PC), the short- and long-term retrogradation were both inhibited and the anti-retrogradation rates (AR) during 1 and 21 days were as high as 100% and 44.17–69.30%, respectively. Owing to the destruction of starch chains by extrusion and interaction between starch and polyphenol molecules, the approach, entanglement and aggregation tendencies of starch molecules were all inhibited, which decreased the relative crystallinity (RC), flow resistance and storage modulus of starch paste and also increased the water-holding capacity. The starch retrogradation was thus suppressed. These results are beneficial for the development of starch-based products with high quality and lower retrogradation rate.

Chestnut starch modification with dry heat treatment and addition of xanthan gum: Gelatinization, structural and functional properties

The effects of dry heat treatment and xanthan gum (XG) on the functional, gelatinization, and structural properties of chestnut starch (CS) were investigated. The results showed that the gelatinization viscosity including peak viscosity (PV), trough viscosity (TV), final viscosity (FV), and setback viscosity (SB), viscoelasticity, gel strength and hardness of CS decreased after dry heat treatment, which were negatively correlated with the treatment time, but positively correlated with the addition of XG. X-ray diffraction (XRD) showed that gelatinization would destroy the crystal structure of CS gel. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that CS gel structure got uniform with the combination of dry heat treatment and XG. In vitro digestibility results showed that dry heat treatment with XG addition significantly increased the content of resistant starch (RS) of CS compared to those by dry heat treatment or added XG alone. These results indicate that the combination of dry heat treatment and XG is a potential physical technology for preparing RS, which were beneficial to prevent the incidence of type-II diabetes.

Physico-Chemical Properties of Indian Horse Chestnut (Aesculus indica) Starch Films as Affected by γ-Irradiation

Physico-Chemical Properties of Indian Horse Chestnut (Aesculus indica) Starch Films as Affected by γ-Irradiation

Effects of different hydrocolloids on gelatinization and gels structure of chestnut starch

The effects of carboxymethyl chitosan (CMC), xanthan gum (XG) and sodium alginate (SA) on the gelatinization, rheology, gel properties, crystal form, functional group, water distribution and microstructure of chestnut starch (CS) were studied. The addition of CMC reduced the peak viscosity (PV), trough viscosity (TV) and final viscosity (FV) of CS gel, but increased the setback viscosity (SB) and breakdown viscosity (BD). XG and SA increased all viscosity values (PV, FV, TV, SB, and BD) of CS gel, and XG increased more significantly with the same addition amount. XG and SA were positively correlated with gel strength and viscoelasticity, while CMC was negatively correlated. XG and SA reduced the spin–spin relaxation time (T2), and promoted the water in the sample to gradually change to the bound water state, while CMC increased T2, resulting in more free water content. Results also showed that the addition of CMC, XG and SA did not produce new functional groups and original crystal structure disappeared after CS gelatinization, and the addition of 0.5% XG and 0.1% SA made the structure more orderly. The addition of CMC, XG and SA made the structure of CS uniform. These results will provide a theoretical basis for the production of food and non-food industrial products, and provide new insights for the application of other starches and hydrocolloids.

Optimization of chestnut starch acetate synthesis by response surface methodology and its effect on dough properties

Chestnut starch acetate (CSA) was prepared by attaching acetic anhydride groups on chestnut starch (CS) molecules. The process conditions for the preparation of CSA were optimized through single-factor testing and response surface analysis. The optimal conditions were as follows: acetic anhydride content 7%, time of reaction 92 min, temperature 33°C, and pH 8. The actual average apparent viscosity of CSA was 480.53 ± 0.29 mPa·s, which was 109.38% higher than that of natural CS. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis showed that the hydroxyl group was replaced by the acetyl group on the acetic anhydride. The X-ray diffraction analysis revealed that the crystal form of CSA was type C even after modification. As observed by scanning electron microscopy, the surface of some CSA granules presented different degrees of sag, breakages, and wrinkles. The water retention analysis of the dough revealed that the addition of CSA in the dough was 6%, and the dough had the strongest hydrophilicity and the best water retention. Further, a high number of freeze-thaw cycles reduced the water retention of the dough. The texture characteristics analysis indicated the addition of CSA in the raw dough was 6%–9%, which improved the firmness and toughness of the frozen-thawed dough. Practical applications The chestnut processing industry is looking for a new way to develop chestnut derivatives and comprehensively utilize chestnut fruit waste. As the main component of chestnut fruit, starch can be used as a substitute for traditional starch sources such as cereals and tubers. In recent years, modified starch has been widely used in food processing fields such as bread, ice cream, and gluten-free food due to its excellent properties such as high transparency, good stability, and strong water retention. The present study provides an investigation about optimization of chestnut starch acetate (CSA) synthesis by response surface 3D modeling methodology and its effect on dough properties. The results show that the technology of preparing CSA can be regarded as one of the excellent alternative methods to simplify the processing and improve the quality of modified starch. And the modified starch is applied to the dough, the dough shows excellent water retention, and its hardness and toughness are also improved. We believe that the chestnut industry can use the results of this research in the reprocessing of chestnut derivative products and utilization of discarded chestnuts.

Morphology and structure of acorn starches isolated by enzymatic and alkaline methods

Abstract Morphology and structure of starch from fruits of two acorns species, Quercus rotundifolia Lam. (QR) and Quercus suber Lam. (QS), isolated by enzymatic (ENZ) and alkaline (A3S) methods were studied. Acorn starches granules presented a round and oval shape, consisting of medium/small granules, with a mean granule size ranging between 9 and 13 µm. Isolated acorn starches appear as light grayish-brown in naked eye, with high values of L* for starches isolated by the ENZ method, and QR starches were duller than QS. No differences were observed for all the samples in FTIR spectra results. Acorn starches showed a C-type pattern, with a relative crystallinity between 43.1 and 46.6%. The 13C CP/MAS NMR spectra are different for the used isolation methods but are similar for both acorn species. However, acorn-isolated starches presented a predominant A-type allomorph packing type, and the A3S starches showed a higher degree of crystalline material. Those differences in the structure of acorn starches would be helpful to better understand the relationships among structure and functional properties for a possible potential industrial application of chestnut starches.

Effect of Ultrasonic and Microwave Dual-Treatment on the Physicochemical Properties of Chestnut Starch.

This work examined the effect of ultrasound and microwave treatments, separate and in combination, on the physicochemical and functional properties of chestnut starch. The results revealed that the ultrasonic-microwave (UM) and microwave-ultrasonic (MU) dually modified samples exhibited more severe surface damage, weaker birefringence, and lower relative crystallinity and gelatinization enthalpy than the native and single-treated starches. The UM samples showed the highest oil absorption capacity, and the MU samples showed the highest water absorption capacity and the best freeze-thaw stability (five cycles) among all samples. The swelling power, peak, trough, final, and breakdown viscosities, and pasting temperature all decreased regardless of single or dual modification. This study provides a reference for potential industrial applications of ultrasound and microwave treatments for the modification of chestnut starch.

Processing of air-dried chestnut and physicochemical properties of its starch with low digestibility

Naturally air-dried chestnut is a traditional processed chestnut in North China and is eaten without being cooked. However, the processing is time-consuming and uncontrollable. To accelerate processing, two drying temperature of 40 °C and 50 °C (lower than the gelatinization temperature of starch) were selected. The optimum conditions for air-dried chestnut (ADC) and the physicochemical and digestive properties of ADC starch were investigated. Moisture and total starch contents decreased while amylose and total water-soluble sugar contents as well as the activity of endogenous amylase increased in ADC compared with fresh chestnut. The relative content of the high-molecular-weight fraction decreased as the low-molecular-weight fraction increased. The relative crystallinity and short-range molecular order of the starch decreased after air drying, and was positively correlated with onset temperature, peak temperature, conclusion temperature, and the enthalpy change. The ADC starch maintained the same proportion of resistant starch as observed in fresh chestnut starch. These results provide useful information for the industrial production of ADC in which the starch is of low digestibility.

Structural, physicochemical, textural, and thermal properties of phosphorylated chestnut starches with different degrees of substitution

Phosphorylated chestnut starches (PCS) with different degrees of substitution (DS) in the range of 0.0000 to 0.1128 were prepared by changing the length of time of the esterification reaction. The structural, physicochemical, textural, and thermal properties of the resulting compounds were determined. Esterification affected the morphological structure of native chestnut starch (CS), resulting in cracks in the surface of PCS granules, as shown by scanning electron microscopy. Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy revealed the intensities of characteristic peaks at 1019.51 and 859.44 cm−1 and that these increased with increasing DS, confirming the successful introduction of phosphate groups into CS molecules. Physicochemical analysis revealed that the transparency, solubility, expansibility, and freeze-thaw stability of PCS improved with increasing DS compared with native CS. Texture profile analysis showed that the hardness, brittleness, springiness, gumminess, and chewiness of the PCS decreased, whereas their adhesiveness and cohesiveness increased. Differential scanning calorimetry revealed a decrease in onset temperature, peak temperature, conclusion temperature, and the enthalpy value with increasing DS. Pasting properties indicated that the apparent viscosity and the viscosity stability of PCS were significantly improved and gelatinization temperatures reduced compared with native CS. Practical applications Food manufacturing and industrial processes are seeking new forms of modified starch with increased stability and improved quality for use in food products as a thickener, stabilizer, and functional ingredient. Phosphorylated starch is one of the most widely used modified starches. Compared with the original starch, phosphorylated starch shows good freeze-thaw stability, better swelling power, and strong anti-retrograde characteristics. However, little information is available for the physicochemical, morphological, textural, and thermal characteristics of Phosphorylated chestnut starches (PCS) with different DS. Thus, in the current study, PCS with different DS were prepared and their physicochemical, morphological, textural, thermal, and pasting characteristics were investigated. These results will help us to better understand the features of PCS, which could provide an alternative approach for chestnut reprocessing and the comprehensive utilization of its derivatives. We believe that the results of this study could also be useful for selecting suitable DS of PCS for different requirements in food manufacturing and other industrial processes.

Production and characterization of starch nanoparticles by mild alkali hydrolysis and ultra-sonication process

In this report, synthesis of the starch nanoparticles from underutilized and cheap sources viz: Horse chestnut (HS), Water chestnut (WS) and Lotus stem (LS) by using mild alkali hydrolysis and ultra-sonication process has been presented. The particles were characterized by Differential scanning colorimeter (DSC), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Rheology, Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infra-spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR). The particle size measurements, functional properties and antioxidant potential of starch nanoparticles were also analyzed. The experimental results revealed that the average particle size diameter of Horse chestnut starch nanoparticles (HSP), Water chestnut starch nanoparticles (WSP) and Lotus stem starch nanoparticles (LSP) was found to be 420, 606 and 535 nm, respectively. We observed a notable increase in the water absorption capacity but decreased capacity for oil absorption in the starch nano-particles. SEM images revealed damaged starch granules after size reduction. Additionally, loss of crystallinity and molecular order was observed from XRD and ATR-FTIR spectra. It was concluded that the starch nanoparticles have better thermal stability, increased viscosity and antioxidant properties.

Influence of ball milling on the production of starch nanoparticles and its effect on structural, thermal and functional properties

The starch nanoparticles from water chestnut (WS), lotus stem (LS) and horse chestnut (HS) starch were synthesized using planetary ball milling. The starch nanoparticles were investigated by using various techniques like particle size analyser, differential scanning colorimeter (DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), rheometer, and attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR). The particle size of horse chestnut starch nanoparticles (HNS), water chestnut starch nanoparticles (WNS) and lotus stem starch nanoparticles (LNS) was found to be 343,271 & 855 nm with zeta potential of −18.75, −20.45 & −12.2 mV, respectively. SEM revealed small and damaged starch granules. The relative crystallinity was decreased from 13.13 to 6.22, 22.27 to 7.96 and 26.16 to 7.98% in HS, LS and WS starch after ball milling and average crystallite size of starch nanoparticles was found to be 9–12 nm. The starch nanoparticles also showed increase in transition temperature and viscosity as analysed by DSC and rheometer, respectively. These properties could be useful in particular food and drug formulations.