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Swelling behavior involves the process of starch granules absorbing enough water to swell and increase the viscosity of starch suspension under hydrothermal conditions, making it one of the important aspects in starch research. The changes that starch granules undergo during the swelling process are important factors in predicting their functional properties in food processing. However, the factors that affect starch swelling and how swelling, in turn, affects the texture and digestion characteristics of starch-based foods have not been systematically summarized. Compared to its long chains, the short chains of amylose easily interact with amylopectin chains to inhibit starch swelling. Generally, reducing the swelling of starch could increase the strength of the gel while limiting the accessibility of digestive enzymes to starch chains, resulting in a reduction in starch digestibility. This article aims to conduct a comprehensive review of the mechanism of starch swelling, its influencing factors, and the relationship between swelling and the pasting, gelling, and digestion characteristics of starch. The role of starch swelling in the edible quality and nutritional characteristics of starch-based foods is also discussed, and future research directions for starch swelling are proposed. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Retrogradation of short linear glucan debranched from amylopectin was investigated. • The retrogradation process of debranched starch (DBS) takes only 0–120 min. • The retrogradation of DBS is an ultra-short-term process. • The retrogradation enthalpy increased with increase in degree of polymerization. • The retrogradation enthalpy of DBS increased as storage time increased. Retrogradation is inevitable during the storage of starchy products. Retrogradation behavior of starches (e.g., amylopectin and amylose) has been widely investigated. We firstly studied the retrogradation behavior of short linear glucan debranched from amylopectin with different degrees of polymerization (DP). With increasing DP, the retrogradation enthalpy change (ΔH) of debranched starch (DBS) increased. At a DBS to water ratio of 1:2 and a storage time of 0 min, the retrogradation ΔH of DBS samples (DP 11.96, 12.62, and 13.36) reached up to 6.03 ± 0.41, 8.03 ± 0.53, and 12.80 ± 1.57 J/g, respectively. The greater the short-chain length, the more rapid the retrogradation of DBS. The peak temperature of retrograded DBS (101.95–111.53 °C) with a DBS to water ratio of 1:2 stored at 50 °C was greater than that stored at 4 °C. The retrogradation of DBS was rapid, taking only 0–120 min, corresponding to ultra-short-term retrogradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Debranched starch (DBS) has attracted immense interest from the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries as a versatile ingredient. Herein, we firstly developed a simple fractionation method using an edible alcohol solution to separate DBS of different degrees of polymerization (DP). These DBSs were separated from debranched waxy corn starch on the basis of their differential solubility in aqueous/ethanol solutions of different volumetric ratios (1:1.5 and 1:3). Four DBS products were obtained with DP values of 23.53, 20.04, 9.14, and 6.75. The DBS (DP 23.53) exhibited higher iodine staining index values compared to DBSs of lower DPs. The thermograms of DBSs (DP 9.14 and DP 6.75) displayed no apparent peak, indicating their amorphous nature. Compared to freeze-drying, oven-dried DBS (DP 23.53) exhibited a higher relative crystallinity (72.0%). Therefore, the ethanol precipitation method developed here serves as a simple, scalable, and green approach for preparing DBS fractions of different molecular weights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effect of pressure with shear stress on the gelatinization of cornstarch with different amylose/amylopectin ratios (waxy 0/100; maze 23/77; G50 50/50; G80 80/20) was systematically investigated using a high-pressure rheometer. Onset and peak temperature of starch gelatinization as well as the peak viscosity were used to discuss the influence of pressure together with shear stress on the gelatinization of starch granules. The results showed that without shear stress, pressure could resist the gelatinization process due to weak swelling of starch granules and lower quantity of amylose released. However, the shear stress can simply counteract the influence of the pressure since its impact is much high on gelatinization. Under certain pressure and shear stress, both onset and peak temperatures of gelatinization were increased with increasing amylose content, which is in correspondence with the results from differential scanning calorimeter measurement, while the overall viscosity was lower when starches with a higher amylose content was used because part of its granular was not fully dissolved during the measurement. SAXS measurements were used to study the gel structure and stability of starch suspensions. It was found that the scattering intensity of starches in the measured range (0.1–1.0 nm −1 ) is G80 > waxy, indicating the amount of ordered semi-crystalline structures in amylose is higher. Peak values, q = 0.4 nm −1 and q = 0.2 nm −1 , detected for waxy starch under different shear rates, indicates that higher shear stress which plays a dominant role compared with pressure, resulted in more degradation in amylopectin, inhibiting the formation of aggregate structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although synthetic polymer hydrogels have excellent mechanical properties, they are not easily degraded, are toxic, and easily cause environmental pollution. Therefore, starch-based hydrogels have attracted great interest due to their biodegradability, biocompatibility, and non-toxicity. First of all, this review describes in detail the preparation of starch-based hydrogels by physical retrogradation method and chemical crosslinking methods, as well as the intrinsic and extrinsic factors that affect the performance of the hydrogels. Moreover, the commonly used methods to characterize starch-based hydrogels and the properties of responsive (thermo-, pH-, and enzyme-responsive) starch-based hydrogels have also attracted wide attention from researchers. In addition, the applications of starch-based hydrogels in starch noodles, treatment of sewage from the food industry, and food bioactive ingredient carriers are discussed. Furthermore, prospects and future directions of starch-based hydrogels are discussed. We believe that this review provides a valuable reference for the efficient preparation and application of starch-based hydrogels. [Display omitted] • Starch retrogradation is the most common method to prepare starch-based hydrogels. • Amylose content affects the mechanical properties of starch-based hydrogels. • The starch-based hydrogels showed thermo-, pH-, and enzyme-responsive properties. • The hydrogels are widely used in starch noodles and as food active substance carriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to develop a rapid ethanol annealing method by incubating pea starch and potato starch in 60% and 75% ethanol solutions at 95 °C for 0.5–3 h (to improve their heat, shear, and acid stability). The peak viscosities of the annealed starches decreased, the breakdown values declined to 0 cP, and the trough and final viscosities decreased remarkably. Furthermore, the pea starch transformed from a C-type to an A-type crystalline form, while the potato starch remained a B-type. Ethanol annealing also increased the pasting temperatures and decreased the enthalpy change values of the starches. When annealed in the 60% ethanol solution for 3 h, the pea starch showed the highest peak gelatinization temperature at 80.97 °C, which was 15.55 °C higher than the native starch. Moreover, the annealed starches showed remarkable decreases in swelling and solubility. Compared to traditional water annealing, this method could reduce the incubation period and lead to a higher gelatinization temperature of starch, which would have applications for thickening and stabilizing in the food system, for example, in the production of soups, puddings, and deep-fried foods. [Display omitted] • A new strategy for annealing starch in ethanol solution was studied. • The progress of ethanol annealing starch was shorter than that of water annealing. • Ethanol solution annealing treatment formed a complex between ethanol and amylose. • The thermal stability of starch was enhanced by ethanol annealing treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]