Starch Index Research Articles

Structural Modifications and Strategies for Native Starch for Applications in Advanced Drug Delivery.

Pharmaceutical excipients are compounds or substances other than API which are added to a dosage form, these excipients basically act as carriers, binders, bulk forming agents, colorants, and flavouring agents, and few excipients are even used to enhance the activity of active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) and various more properties. However, despite of these properties, there are problems with the synthetic excipients such as the possibility of causing toxicity, inflammation, autoimmune responses, lack of intrinsic bioactivity and biocompatibility, expensive procedures for synthesis, and water solubility. However, starch as an excipient can overcome all these problems in one go. It is inexpensive, there is no toxicity or immune response, and it is biocompatible in nature. It is very less used as an excipient because of its high digestibility and swelling index, high glycemic index, paste clarity, film-forming property, crystalline properties, etc. All these properties of starch can be altered by a few modification processes such as physical modification, genetic modification, and chemical modification, which can be used to reduce its digestibility and glycemic index of starch, improve its film-forming properties, and increase its paste clarity. Changes in some of the molecular bonds which improve its properties such as binding, crystalline structure, and retrogradation make starch perfect to be used as a pharmaceutical excipient. This research work provides the structural modifications of native starch which can be applicable in advanced drug delivery. The major contributions of the paper are advances in the modification of native starch molecules such as physically, chemically, enzymatically, and genetically traditional crop modification to yield a novel molecule with significant potential for use in the pharmaceutical industry for targeted drug delivery systems.

ЭФФЕКТИВНОСТЬ БИОПРЕПАРАТА «ОRGANITN» НА АДАПТИВНОСТЬ И ПРО-ДУКТИВНОСТЬ КАРТОФЕЛЯ СОРТА «РЕГГИ» В УСЛОВИЯХ ПРЕДКАМЬЯ РТ

The results of the effectiveness of the preparation "OrganitN" containing live bacteria of the genus Azospirillum zeae on yield and starch index are presented. The experiments were laid on sod-podzolic medium loamy soil, agrochemical indicators: humus content – 4.2%, pHKCl = 6.6; P2O5 – 1028 mg/kg; K2O-377 mg/kg. The scheme of the experiment included the following options: 1) control; 2) "OrganitN" consumption rate of 5L /ha, pre-sowing treatment by soaking tubers; 3) "OrganitN consumption rate of 5L/ha without pre-soaking tubers, irrigation method. Pre-sowing treatment of potato tubers of the "Reggie" variety with the drug has a positive effect on potato growth. The greatest effect of the preparation "OrganitN" according to the results of harvesting potatoes of the variety "Reggi", a reliable increase in yield (16.4%) was obtained in option 2 with a consumption rate of 5 liters / ha, by soaking tubers, the yield was 21.7 t / ha, the method of watering without soaking was less effective. Soaking tubers gives a more stable connection between bacteria and the rhizosphere of the plant. The presence of a more extensive number of nitrogen-fixing bacteria led to a high content of alkaline hydrolyzed nitrogen in the soil (190 mg/kg) compared to the control (136 mg/kg) and improved the nutritional regime of the soil. The activity of nitrogen fixers prolongs the growing season and affects the growth and formation of tubers. The use of the drug by soaking the seed material increased the yield of potatoes, also contributed to an increase in the number of tubers from one bush. Starch indicators are not increased. The use of bacteria in the agricultural sector will contribute to the improvement of the soil, increase the soil biota, achieve and create a quorum between them for joint action and the accumulation of soil organic matter

Antioxidant activity and glycemic index of resistant starch from black glutinous rice

Type 2 diabetes mellitus ((T2DM) is a global public health manifested by hyperglycemia due to insulin resistance. Rice is the main staple food for the world's population but has a high glycemia index (GI) value. Therefore, this research was aimed to produce resistance starch (RS) from black glutinous rice with different methods – autoclave and annealing, freeze-thawing, and acid methanol methods. The RS content, total phenolic compound content, antioxidant activity, and estimated GI (pGI) were investigated. Results showed that the autoclave and annealing method yielded highest RS content of 27.33±8.56%, followed by freeze-thawing, 15-day acid methanol, and 30-min acid methanol methods. The RS from the autoclave and annealing method also had highest total phenolic content (61.55±1.19 mg gallic acid/g sample) and antioxidant activity by 2,2-Diphenyil-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH, IC50 of 7.40±0.24 mg/ml) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP, 75.47±0.51 mg tocopherol equivalent/g extract). Moreover, The RS from the autoclave and annealing method also had the lowest pGI (57.32±0.74). In conclusion, the autoclave and annealing process gave the highest yield of RS with the highest total phenolic content and antioxidant activity; and with the lowest GI compared to the freeze-thawing and acid methanol methods.

Apple Fruit Growth and Quality Depend on the Position in Tree Canopy.

Modern apple orchard systems should guarantee homogeneity of fruit internal and external qualities and fruit maturity parameters. However, when orchards reach productive age, a variation of these parameters takes place and mostly it is related to uneven light distribution within the tree canopy. The aim of the study was to evaluate the canopy position’s effect on fruit internal and external quality parameters. This is the first study where all the main fruit quality and maturation parameters were evaluated on the same trees and were related to the light conditions and photosynthetic parameters. Four fruit positions were tested: top of the apple tree, lower inside part of the canopy, and east and west sides of the apple tree. Fruit quality variability was significant for fruit size, blush, colour indices, total sugar content, dry matter concentration, accumulation of secondary metabolites and radical scavenging activity. Fruit position in the canopy did not affect flesh firmness and fruit maturity parameters such as the starch index, Streif index and respiration rate. At the Lithuanian geographical location (55°60′ N), significantly, the highest fruit quality was achieved at the top of the apple tree. The tendency was established that apple fruits from the west side of the canopy have better fruit quality than from the east side and it could be related to better light conditions at the west side of the tree. Inside the canopy, fruits were distinguished only by the higher accumulation of triterpenic compounds and higher content of malic acid. Light is a main factor of fruit quality variation, thus all orchard management practices, including narrow two-dimensional tree canopies and reflecting ground covers which improve light penetration through the tree canopy, should be applied.

Relação entre conteúdo de matéria seca, índices de maturação na colheita e qualidade de maçãs ‘Gala’ após armazenagem

Abstract The objective of this study was to determine the relationship among dry matter content (DMC) and maturity indexes at harvest and quality of ‘Gala’ apples after storage. Apple fruit of four ‘Gala’ strains produced on two rootstocks and three growing regions were used for experiments 1 and 2. For all experiments, fruit harvest maturity was assessed one day after harvest and stored fruit was assessed after removal from storage plus seven days at 22 °C. For experiment 1, fruit were harvested weekly along the final stages of growth and maturation on the tree. For experiment 2, fruit were harvested at commercial maturity and stored under a controlled atmosphere at 0.7 oC for 195 days. For experiment 3, fruit from two orchards were harvested at commercial maturity and stored in air at 1oC for 50, 110, or 194 days. DMC did not change during the final stages of fruit growth, however, there were significant changes in fruit firmness, starch index, and soluble solids content (SSC) during the same period. At the commercial harvest, fruit DMC showed high correlation with SSC, titratable acidity (TA) and firmness. DMC assessed at the commercial harvest also showed high correlation after storage with SSC and TA but not with firmness or flesh browning (FB). DMC decreased slightly during storage. The results show that DMC is not a reliable index to determine ‘Gala’ apple maturity at harvest, or to predict fruit firmness and FB after storage. However, DMC at harvest has potential to predict SSC and TA after storage, two important fruit quality traits. Fruit density at harvest showed utility to predict risk of flesh browning after storage.

Calcium applications on ‘Fuji Suprema’ and ‘Maxi Gala’ apple trees: fruit quality at harvest and after cold storage

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of new Ca sources sprayed on ‘Fuji Suprema’ and ‘Maxi Gala’ apple trees on nutrient levels in leaves and fruit, as well as on fruit ripening features and quality at harvest time and after cold storage. Experiments were carried out in a commercial orchard planted with ‘Fuji Suprema’ and ‘Maxi Gala’ apple trees in Caçador, Santa Catarina state, Brazil. Application of different Ca sources and untreated trees were evaluated in each experiment. Fruit were harvested at two different ripening stages and analyzed based on the following variables: fruit ripening at harvest time, as well as fruit quality and incidence of physiological disorders after 210-day storage at 1 °C. Calcium applications did not change Ca levels in the leaves and of the whole fruit. Calcium levels in fruit peel increased in cultivars Maxi Gala and Fuji Suprema due to leaf Ca applications. ‘Maxi Gala’ apples recorded higher postharvest incidence of physiological disorders, such as greater loss of fruit firmness than ‘Fuji Suprema’ apples (Due to 1-methylcyclopropene [1-MCP] application on ‘Fuji Suprema’ apples). Calcium applications did not change fruit maturation (starch index and pulp firmness) or apple pulp firmness preservation in both cultivars, although they reduced the incidence of bitter pit disorder in ‘Maxi Gala’ apples. The new sources of Ca tested did not increase Ca contents, nor did they reduced the risk for physiological disorder compared to the standard CaCl2 treatment that has been commercially used for decades as the main Ca fertilizer.

Novel Vigna subterranea (L.) Verdc Soluble Dietary Fibre-Starch Nanocomposite: Functional and Antioxidant Characteristics.

Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea (L.) Verdc.) is a great source of soluble dietary fibre and starch. Bambara groundnut soluble dietary fibre is rich in bioactive compounds, namely, uronic acids (11.8%) and hydrolysable polyphenols (expressed as gallic acid equivalents (GAE) 20 mg/g), with crucial physiological and functional benefits. The industrial use of native starch is limited because of the inherent undesirable attributes that render it unstable. The aim of this study is to characterise the antioxidant, functional and physicochemical properties of Bambara groundnut starch-soluble dietary fibre nanocomposite (hereafter groundnut nanocomposite). The pasting properties by rapid visco analysis, chemical composition, hydration properties, oil-binding capacity, emulsifying activity index (EAI), emulsion stability index (ESI) and antioxidant properties of Bambara groundnut starch, soluble fibre and nanocomposite were studied. The Bambara groundnut soluble dietary fibre and nanocomposite did not exhibit typical pasting properties. The nanocomposite had high mass fraction of carbohydrates (78.7%) and proteins (7.0%), low mass fraction of fat (0.8%) and had a considerable mass fraction of ash (4.9%). The Bambara groundnut starch, soluble dietary fibre and nanocomposite showed significant (p<0.001) differences in solubility. Their EAI values were 23.2, 85.7 and 90.6%, respectively, and the ESI values were 23.3, 87.1 and 87.5%, respectively. The three biopolymers differed significantly (p<0.001) in all colour characteristics: lightness (L*), redness/greenness (a*), yellowness/blueness (b*), chroma and hue angles. Their polyphenolic mass fraction, expressed as GAE, was 0.10, 6.6 and 0.46 mg/g, respectively, and their ferric reducing antioxidant power values, expressed as ascorbic acid equivalents (AAE), were 1.2, 4.8 and 1.4 μmol/g, respectively. The phenolic compounds (in mg/g): chlorogenic acid 18, monocrotaline 20, luteolin 7-O-(6''-malonylglucoside) 4 and casuarine 6-α-d-glucoside 27 were present in the dietary fibre but absent from the starch and nanocomposite. The Bambara groundnut nanocomposite possesses desirable physicochemical and antioxidant properties, making it suitable as an ingredient in various food systems. Nanocomposites have the potential to revolutionise the food industry but their study as food ingredients is very limited. Furthermore, nothing is known about the physicochemical, functional and antioxidant characteristics of Bambara groundnut nanocomposite, thus investigating these properties will address this knowledge gap.

Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica L.) as a Functional Component in Durum Wheat Pasta Production: Impact on Chemical Composition, In Vitro Glycemic Index, and Quality Properties.

Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica L.) is a good source of biologically active compounds with proven beneficial health effects. This study aimed to investigate the effect of nettle herb supplementation on chemical composition, including the content of selected minerals and pigments, the in vitro glycemic response, and the cooking and sensory quality of extruded pasta. Tagliatelle-shaped pasta was produced under semi-technical scale by partial replacement of durum wheat semolina with 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5% of lyophilized nettle. The partial substitution with freeze-dried nettle caused a statistically significant (p ≤ 0.05) increase in the content of minerals, especially calcium, iron, potassium, and magnesium in the products. The calcium content in the pasta fortified with 5%-addition of stinging nettle was 175.9 mg 100 g−1 and this concentration was 5.8 times higher than in the control sample. At the same time, high content of chlorophylls and carotenoids (237.58 µg g−1 and 13.35 µg g−1, respectively) was noticed. Enriching pasta with a 0–5% addition of stinging nettle resulted in a statistically significant (p ≤ 0.05) increase in the content of the total dietary fiber (TDF) (from 5.1 g 100 g−1 to 8.82 g 100 g−1) and the insoluble dietary fiber (IDF) (from 2.29 g 100 g−1 to 5.63 g 100 g−1). The lowest hydrolysis index of starch (HI = 17.49%) and the lowest glycemic index (GI = 49.31%) were noted for the pasta enriched with 3% nettle.

A convolutional neural network approach to detecting fruit physiological disorders and maturity in ‘Abbé Fétel’ pears

Image processing through the implementation of manually coded algorithms has been adopted to detect fruit damage during post-harvest operations. This study tested convolution neural networks with “You Only Look Once” (YOLO) architecture using a commercial online platform to detect physiological disorders and ripening stage in ‘Abbé Fétel’ pear. Disorders such as superficial scald and the starch pattern index (SPI) were assessed. Three different models were trained to detect: I) individual fruit within the boxes; II) superficial scald or senescence scald on pear skin; III) the SPI value of pears was assessed using the Lugol solution. Preliminary statistics show that the model to count the fruit inside the boxes reached 64.70% of true positives with 0.5 intersection over union. The second had less accuracy (up to 20% of true positives) but maintained a good average precision (60%) with different confidence thresholds (40% and 20%). The third showed good performances compared to the Ctifl and Laimburg scales, with an F1 score of 0.36 and 0.59, respectively. The effectiveness of the transfer learning method was demonstrated. However, further image labelling and modelling research is needed to improve the accuracy of the simulations and to develop an application for portable devices for pre- and post-harvest factor mapping. These results could lead to improvements in the management of fruit boxes and thus help ensure good fruit quality for consumers. • Artificial intelligence allows to count fruit, to detect disorders and starch index. • Model for pear detection to estimate number of fruit gets F1 score of 0.84 • Model for superficial scald to detect early storage disorders gets an F1 score of 0.28 • Model for starch index to evaluate fruit ripening gets an F1 score of 0.59 • Neural networks applied to food production chain ensure good quality for consumers.

Long-term storage and temperature induced quality changes of industrial-scale wet starch noodles

Wet starch noodle (moisture content: 51.38 ± 1.29%) as a retrograded starch-gel product was produced on an industrial scale and investigated to learn the role of long-term storage and storage temperature in its water characteristics, physicochemical properties, sensorial properties and structure changes. During twelve weeks' storage, moisture content, hardness, water absorption index, brightness, and overall acceptability of wet starch noodles dwindled with increasing storage time, accompanied by the increased cooking loss and water mobility transformation from “freezable” to “un-freezable”. In particular, storage temperature was found to have significant correlations with moisture loss, textural performance and appearance color of wet starch noodles during long-term storage. Although refrigeration temperature increased the color stability of wet starch noodles, it would weaken the internal linkage strength and increase cooking loss and broken noodles. Comparatively, wet starch noodles stored at 25 °C exhibited more ordered arrays and smooth cross-section evidenced by SEM, as well as favorable sensorial properties after twelve weeks’ storage. These findings provide beneficial insights into storage stability of wet starch noodles and its correlation with storage temperature, thus giving guiding information for manufacturers and suppliers in selecting of appropriate storage conditions for this industrial-scale product.

Aminoethoxyvinylglycine (AVG) Uygulamasının Red Chief ve Braeburn Elma Çeşitlerinde Hasatönü Meyve Dökümü ve Meyve Kalitesi Üzerine Etkisi

The study was carried out in 2017 in the semi-dwarf apple orchard established in 2010 in Kemalpaşa village in Tokat province in order to determine the effect of AVG application in different concentrations on the pre-harvest fruit drop and fruit quality of Red Chief and Braeburn apple cultivars. In the study, 7 years-old apple trees of Red Chief and Braeburn cultivars grafted on MM106 rootstock were used. AVG, at 0, 75, 150 and 225 mg L-1 combined with a Regulaid’ surfactant at 0.1% v/v, was applied to the trees before anticipated harvest. Fruit drop ratio, which varied depending on the cultivar, was lower in the AVG treated trees, and the effect of the application concentration was significant. AVG application was effective in maintaining the fruit retention force. The significant differences in fruit retention force occurred between application concentrations. It was determined that the the fruit retention force was higher in the fruits belonging to the Breaburn cultivar. The effect of AVG on fruit size, SSC pH and acidity rates varied depending on the variety. There was no significant differences in fruit firmness and starch index between cultivars. AVG application increased the fruit firmness and decreased the amount of starch both cultivar. As a result, of this study, it has been revealed that AVG can be used effectively in preventing pre-harvest fruit drop in Redchief ve Braeburn.

Dissecting the influence of the orchard location and the maturity at harvest on apple quality, physiology and susceptibility to major postharvest pathogens

‘Golden Reinders’ apple quality parameters, fruit physiology, biochemical composition and susceptibility to Penicillium expansum and Rhizopus stolonifer were analysed in fruit harvested from four different locations (two valley and two mountain orchards) and from the same valley orchard at six different maturity stages. Growing location strongly influenced the taste- and health-related fruit composition whereas the fruit maturity at harvest mainly affected the ethylene biosynthetic pathway and ethylene-dependant quality traits such as the fruit firmness and starch index. The fruit maturity at harvest, but not the growing location, also affected the severity of the infection caused by P. expansum and R. stolonifer, with mature fruit showing higher susceptibility to pathogen infection. Besides, by employing a Partial Least Square (PLS) regression model, our data showed that the severity of the lesions caused by R. stolonifer were intimately related to the fruit ethylene production. Overall, the results from this study demonstrate that differences in environmental conditions between orchards (mountain vs valley) strongly influenced the composition of ‘Golden Reinders’ apples without affecting the susceptibility of the fruit to two major postharvest pathogens.

Крахмал зерна квиноа (Сhenopodium quinoa Willd.): состав, морфология и физико-химические свойства

Introduction. The main component of quinoa grain is starch, the properties of which affect the quality of quinoa-based food products. There is no information about quinoa starch in the Russian scientific literature. Therefore, the review summarizes and presents foreign knowledge about the isolation, chemical composition, structure, and physicochemical properties of quinoa starch Study objects and methods. The research featured scientific articles and chapters of scientific books on the structure and chemical composition of quinoa published over the past 10 years. The work used empirical and theoretical methods of scientific research. Results and its discussion. Currently, starch from quinoa grain is produced only under laboratory conditions by various methods of grinding and soaking. Most studies point to up to 10% of amylose in quinoa starch. Amylopectin in quinoa starch has a high number of short single chains and a very low number of long single chains, and their ratio is higher than that in other starches. The granule size of quinoa starch is 0.4–2.0 microns, which is significantly smaller than that of most starches. Quinoa starch belongs to polymorphic type A. The gelatinization temperature and enthalpy of quinoa starch are lower than those of amaranth, corn, sorghum, millet, and wheat starch, which is probably due to the fine structure of amylopectin. With an increase in temperature for every 10°C, the swelling force and solubility of quinoa starch increase on average by 21.5–27%. As the temperature rises from 55 to 65°C, the solubility index of quinoa starch increases sharply by 5–10 times. The viscosity of quinoa starch is significantly higher than that of most known starches. It also is more sensitive to enzymes. Conclusion. The work presents the results of scientific research on various matters: methods of starch isolation from quinoa, its chemical composition, and methods of amylose determination; structure of starch grains, their shape, type, and degree of crystallization; physicochemical properties of starch, including gelatinization, swelling, solubility, rheological properties, retrogradation, changes in the transparency of starch gel, and susceptibility to enzymes. The latter determines the choice of technological parameters in the development of formulations and food technologies, including functional foods for people with gluten intolerance (celiac disease). Further studies of the chemical composition of quinoa can help to meet the growing demand for these products and expand the range of the domestic market for gluten-free foods.

Structural changes in corn starch granules treated at different temperatures

The four structural levels of corn starch granules are as follows: particle structure, growth ring, crystalline region and chain structure. In this study, corn starch granules treated at different temperatures (50, 60, 70, 80, and 90 °C), then freeze-dried were evaluated. The corn starch granules remained largely intact in the control and at 50 °C and 60 °C, but with increasing temperature, the starch granules were broken. The growth ring structure and crystallization zone gradually broke up and disappeared with increasing temperature. Moreover, with increasing temperature, the degree of order (DO) and degree of the double helix (DD) of the crystalline region decreased gradually, indicating that the double helix structure of amylopectin in corn starch dissociated during heating. The molecular weight distribution index of corn starch was analyzed by gel permeation chromatography (GPC) and found that it increased with increasing temperature, indicating that the molecular chains of corn starch were broken during heating. In sum, the structural levels of corn starch granules, including the particle structure, growth ring, and crystalline region were damaged to varying degrees, whereas chain structure has been changed, after being processed at different temperatures. This study provides a model for theory of gelatinization in corn starch system.

Influence of weather conditions on the quality of ‘Ingrid Marie’ apples and their susceptibility to grey mould infection

Abstract Apple (Malus domestica) is one of the most popular fruits consumed around the world. Environmental factors influence the development and quality of apples. We determined the influence of weather conditions on the quality of ‘Ingrid Marie’ apples harvested from eight different orchards in south Sweden in the years 2015–2017 and their susceptibility to infection by grey mould (Botrytis cinerea). We infected apples and collected data on fruit firmness, starch index, weight of fruit and lesion size in addition to collecting data on temperature, rainfall, sunlight and humidity in the period April–September. High rainfall in early April, during tree flowering, and in early June, during early fruit development, correlated with improved quality, namely reduced lesion size and low firmness level. Furthermore, with humidity higher than 77% in early June apples became more tolerant to grey mould, while low temperatures and high humidity in a period from the end of August to end of September, during the end of the fruit cell enlargement stage, correlated with larger apples. We conclude that rainfall, humidity and temperature are important weather factors influencing the quality of apples and their susceptibility to grey mould. This information may help apple growers understand the effects of weather conditions on apples more in detail. From such updated information, preharvest techniques may be applied (e.g. pruning, nutrition, irrigation or drainage) to improve conditions and apple quality as well as to reduce their susceptibility to pathogen attack.

Comparison of fruit maturation and quality of ‘Gala’ apple strains at harvest and after storage

Abstract Strains of ‘Gala’ apples with highly red-colored skins have been planted in new orchards based on consumer interest and financial returns to the producers. The effect of somatic mutation may not be limited to change in fruit skin appearance. In this study, six ‘Gala’ strains were compared regarding fruit maturity and quality attributes at commercial harvest time and after 210 days in controlled atmosphere cold storage plus seven days shelf-life. Experimental orchards were established in three regions and fruit assessed over four seasons. The fruit skin red color area was highest in ‘Baigent’ and ‘Galaxy’, and lowest in ‘Royal Gala’ and ‘Imperial Gala’. Fruit of ‘Maxi Gala’ and ‘Gala Real’ had intermediate skin coloration among the six strains. There was no difference among the strains regarding the fruit weight, starch index, flesh firmness, soluble solid content (SSC), and titratable acidity (TA) at harvest, and flesh firmness, SSC and TA after storage. Fruit of the six ‘Gala’ strains were equally affected by physiological disorders (flesh browning, fruit cracking, calcium deficiency disorders and shrivel) and fungal diseases (external decay, core rot and Glomerella cingulata spot) during storage, indicating that they have similar storability. Only ‘Imperial Gala’ and ‘Royal Gala’ exhibited superficial scald, an unusual disorder for ‘Gala’ cultivar. Harvest management and potential economic impacts of highly red colored fruit of ‘Gala’ strains are discussed.

Effect of Wet Milling and Purification Process on Yield and Color of Jackfruit Seed Starch

Jackfruit is a common fruit, which grows in Asian areas, including Thailand, India, China and Vietnam. Jackfruit seeds are a by-product of the food industry, and are typically ignored as a source of nutrients in the human diet given their possible application.. Starch production is a conventional ways to take advantage of this by-product source. The wet milling and purification process are the two main processes for extracting and improving the color of starch. Therefore, this research aims to determine the impact of wet milling and purification process on yield and color of starch as well as evaluate some parameters of physicochemical properties in jackfruit seed starch. In this study, the ratio of jackfruit seed:water (1:1, 1:2, 1:3, 1:4 and 1:5) and the time of wet milling (1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 min) are investigated. Three main factors observed in the purification process were the type of solvent (water and ethanol), solvent ratio (1:2, 1:4, 1:6 and 1:8) and the number of purification (1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 times). The result revealed that the ratio of jackfruit seed : water reached the highest starch yield was 1:3 (32.11±1.06%, db) and the time achieved 3 min (40.77±1.25%, db). The selected solvent for purification of starch was ethanol with the ratio of sample : water was 1:4 and the number of purification was two times for the best color. Some of characteristic nutrition values was evaluated, including %protein: 3.8, %ash: 0.08, %carbohydrate 86.99 and %lipid 0.20). The water solubility index and viscosity of starch were contradictory. When the temperature increased, the viscosity of starch decreased but the solubility index increased. Jackfruit seed starch was spherical or semi-oval which was presented by SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope) method.

Determination of bagged ‘Fuji’ apple maturity by visible and near-infrared spectroscopy combined with a machine learning algorithm

Determination of apple maturity in orchards is very important to determine the harvest time and postharvest storage conditions. The aim of this study is to investigate the ability of visible and near-infrared (Vis-NIR) spectroscopy to determine the maturity of bagged ‘Fuji’ apples using the starch index as the maturity index. Using the starch index, 846 apples were divided into three maturity levels (immature, harvest maturity, and eatable maturity). Principal component analysis, the random frog (RF) algorithm, and the RF algorithm combined with the successive projection algorithm (RF-SPA) were used to extract the principal components or characteristic wavelengths of the spectral data. Five machine learning algorithms, namely, the least squares support vector machine (LSSVM), the probabilistic neural network, the extreme learning machine, the partial least squares discrimination analysis, and linear discriminant analysis (LDA), were used to develop a calibration model. By comparing the results of different modeling methods, it was determined that the prediction performance of the RF-SPA-LSSVM model based on 15 characteristic wavelengths was the best. The classification accuracy of the prediction set was 89.05% and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of the three types of apples was greater than 0.9210. In addition, four spectral indexes related to the chlorophyll content were used to predict apple maturity. The classification accuracies of the LDA models based on the spectral indexes were 77.63%–80.95%, which were lower than that of the calibration model based on the characteristic wavelength. The results show that the maturity of bagged ‘Fuji’ apples can be accurately and nondestructive determined by Vis-NIR spectroscopy. The selected characteristic wavelengths and spectral indexes can provide a reference for development of a nondestructive device for determination of apple maturity.

Interactive effects between sugar source and pelleting temperature on processing, digestibility and blood metabolites in nursery piglets

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of pelleting temperature (60°C or 90°C) and the type of sugar source (refined sugar cane or sugar cane molasses), on post-processed diet characteristics and on animal body weight gain, apparent total tract digestibility of energy and nutrient, and blood metabolites. Thirty-two recently-weaned piglets of both sexes were randomly assigned to 1 of the 4 treatments in a 2 (sugar source, refined sugar cane or sugar cane molasses) x 2 (pelleting temperature, 60°C or 90°C) factorial arrangement. The physicochemical characteristics of the diets evaluated were pellet durability index, fine content and starch gelatinization index. After seven days of adaptation, partial fecal samples were collected for apparent digestibility analyses for five days. For weight gain evaluation, the animals were weighed at 28, 35, 40 and 63 days of age. Blood samples were collected at the beginning (28 days) and the end of the experiment (63 days). Data were submitted to variance analysis and the means were compared by the Tukey test. There was interaction between pelleting temperature and sugar source on the pellet durability index, on the fine content and on the starch gelatinization index (P < 0.05) of the diets. Pelletizing at 90°C increased the pellet durability index in treatment with sugar cane molasses. The fine content was reduced in treatments with pelleting temperature at 90°C and increased in treatments with sugar cane molasses. There was an increase of the starch gelatinization index with refined sugar cane at 90°C. There was no interaction between pelleting temperature and sugar source on starch composition of the diets. The pelleting temperature and the type of sugar source did not influence the levels of resistant and non-resistant starch (P > 0.05). The total starch index was higher in treatments using sugar cane molasses. There was no interaction between pelleting temperature and sugar source on nutrient apparent total tract digestibility. The use of sugar cane molasses promoted higher apparent digestibility of gross energy and ash (A), and pelleting at 90°C increased the apparent digestibility of Ca, P and A (P < 0.05). There was interaction between pelleting temperature and sugar source on the gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) enzyme (P < 0.05), where the use of sugar cane molasses reduced GGT levels in the pelleted diet at 60°C. There was no effect of pelleting temperature and the type of sugar source on animal body weight gain, high density cholesterol (HDL), total cholesterol, triglycerides, urea and albumin. Therefore, sugar cane molasses can replace refined sugar cane as the palatable ingredient in the diet of nursery piglets without affecting animal body weight gain and levels of blood metabolites of the animals, promoting greater apparent digestibility of gross energy and ash, although it had altered the physicochemical characteristics of the diet. The use of sugar cane molasses allowed for the exploration of higher pelleting temperatures (90°C) in the feed processing, leading to increasing the apparent digestibility of Ca, P and A of the diets.

Comparison of fruit attributes of ‘Fuji’ apple strains at harvest and after storage

Commercial apples are graded primarily by appearance and many new 'Fuji' apple strains have been planted in commercial orchards because of the enhanced red color of their skin. The fruit of most apple strains selected for skin color do not differ; however, some apple strains may produce fruit with different firmness and soluble solid content (SSC). This study compared the fruit quality and maturity of three 'Fuji' apple strains ('Fuji Suprema', 'Mishima', and ‘Fuji Select') grown in experimental orchards in southern Brazil. Fruit were harvested at two maturity stages: early, which were stored in air; and advanced, which were stored in a controlled atmosphere (CA). Storage conditions were selected to induce the development of different physiological disorders. Fruit quality was assessed one day after harvest and after 210 days of storage at 0.8 °C plus seven days at 22 °C, over three growing seasons. Skin color was the main variable that distinguished fruits of the three strains. The extent of red coloration was greater on the surface of 'Fuji Suprema’ apples than on 'Mishima’ or 'Fuji Select’, especially for early-harvest fruit. The pattern of fruit maturation on the tree was the same for the three strains and they showed similar starch index, SSC, and titratable acidity; flesh firmness was slightly (<2.5 N) lower in 'Fuji Select' for both maturity stages. At harvest, fruits of the three strains were also similar in terms of fruit weight and development of russeting disorder. 'Fuji Select' apples were least affected by watercore. The three strains showed similar rates of loss of firmness and were equally affected by fungal decay, core rot, superficial scald, calcium deficiency disorders, shrivel, and diffuse flesh browning during storage, indicating that they did not differ in terms of storability. 'Fuji Suprema’ had the lowest susceptibility to CO2 injury, suggesting that distinct CA protocols could be applied for the different 'Fuji’ strains. The results show that planting of 'Fuji Suprema' could increase fruit production of high quality grades based on red skin color and reduce the expenses associated with CO2 removal from storage facilities.