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Ethanol-acid penetration and drying-heating treatment was developed to shorten the preparation time and improve the quality of starch nanocrystals (SNCs). After treatment by optimized parameters, including 40 % ethanol solution, 10.6 mM chloric acid, and heating time of 1.5 h or 2.0 h, the starches exhibited weakened internal structure and relatively complete crystalline structure. Compared with the regular preparation of only acid hydrolysis, the regular final yield (8.5 % after 5 days) was reached in 48 h and 12 h of the starch heated at 1.5 h and 2.0 h, respectively. The micromorphology, molecular weight, and crystalline structure evaluation demonstrated that the collected nanoparticles were indeed SNCs with smaller size and higher relative crystallinity than regular SNCs. Further analysis found that the SNCs had better crystalline lamellae, higher thermal stability, and lower proportion of phosphorus and sulfur atoms than regular SNCs. This provided a potential method for the high-efficiency preparation of SNCs., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Ultrasonic assisted acetic acid hydrolysis was applied to prepare starch nanocrystals (SNCs) from native starches with different crystalline structures (A, B, and C types). The structure properties, morphology, Pickering emulsion stability and curcumin deliver capacity of both SNCs and native starches were investigated and compared. Compared with native starches, SNCs showed smaller size and higher crystallinity. The size of SNCs varied with different crystalline types, with C-type starch exhibiting the smallest SNCs (107.4 nm), followed by A-type (113.8 nm), and B-type displaying the largest particle size (149.0 nm). SNCs-Pickering emulsion showed enhanced stability with smaller emulsion droplets, higher static stability, and denser oil/water interface. SNCs-Pickering emulsions displayed higher curcumin loading efficiency (53.53 %-61.41 %) compared with native starch-Pickering emulsions (13.93 %-19.73 %). During in vitro digestion, SNCs-Pickering emulsions proved to be more proficient in protecting and prolonging the biological activity of curcumin due to their smaller size and better interfacial properties. These findings demonstrated the potential of SNCs for application in Pickering emulsion and delivery of bioactive components., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest We declare that we have no personal or financial relationships with any individuals or organizations that can inappropriately influence our work. No professional or professional interest of any kind is involved in any product of the manuscript., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

To prevent starch nanocrystals (SNCs) that are generated at an early stage from being hydrolyzed excessively, this study proposed a new separation method, named "neutral dispersion and acidic precipitation." SNCs were prepared from waxy potato starch by sulfuric acid hydrolysis. Based on the results of kinetics and molecular weight, the hydrolysis was divided into three stages, e.g., rapid (initial 1 day), medium (subsequent 1 day) and slow stage (2-5 days). The rapid and medium stages were related to the degradation of amorphous region in starch, and the slow stage mainly referred to SNC release. Therefore, the method was developed to separate SNCs at the slow stage. After centrifugation at 6000 rpm, large particles were removed from the SNC suspension under pH 7. The SNCs with small average size and crystallite size, high relative crystallinity (RC), and high dispersion stability in the supernatant were retained and were then precipitated entirely under pH 5, because pH 5 led to the reduction of dispersion stability of SNCs. Meanwhile, the hydrothermal and dry-thermal stability of separated SNCs were significantly promoted. The separation method has the potential in SNC preparation for increasing the yield and collecting products with small size and high RC., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have influenced the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Quinoa starch nanoparticles (QSNPs) prepared by nanoprecipitation had a uniform particle size of 191.20 nm. QSNPs with amorphous crystalline structure had greater contact angle than QS with orthorhombic crystalline structure, which can therefore be utilized to stabilize Pickering emulsions. QSNPs-based Pickering emulsions prepared by suitable formulations (QSNPs concentration of 2.0-2.5 %, oil volume fraction of 0.33-0.67) exhibited good stability against pH of 3-9 and ionic strength of 0-200 mM. The oxidative stability of the emulsions increased with increasing starch concentration and ionic strength. Microstructural and rheological results indicated that the structure of the starch interfacial film and the thickening effect of the water phase affected the emulsion stability. The emulsion had excellent freeze-thaw stability and can be produced as a re-dispersible dry emulsion using the freeze-drying technique. These results implied that the QSNPs had great potential for application in the preparation of Pickering emulsions., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Starch nanocrystals (SNCs) were prepared from waxy rice starch via sulfuric acid hydrolysis. The objective focused on the following: i) the hydrolysis kinetics and structural properties of SNCs; ii) the effects of differential centrifugation on the yield and size distribution of SNCs. The hydrolysis was divided into a rapid hydrolysis stage in the initial two days and a slow hydrolysis stage after two days. During the two-day hydrolysis, the average diameter of SNCs reached 244 nm. After two days of hydrolysis, the degree of crystallinity, crystallite size, and melting temperature and enthalpy increased. The proportion of A-branched chains decreased, whereas the proportion of B1-branched chains and molecular weight did not change considerably. Thus, the reaction in the slow hydrolysis stage could be considered as the surface modification and gradual release of SNCs. Furthermore, SNCs with a small size and high charge density could be used for differential centrifugation., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Starch nanoparticles (SNPs) were produced by nanoprecipitation combined with ultrasonication with the use of different starches (corn, potato and sago starch) and used to stabilize Pickering emulsions. The orthogonal experiment was used to optimize preparation conditions of gelatinization pretreatment duration of 30 min, ultrasonic power of 600 W, and ultrasonic time of 40 min. Compared with native starch, the SNPs were spherical in shape and displayed a V-type crystalline structure with low relative crystallinity and higher degree of double-helix. Compared with native starch-Pickering emulsion, the SNP-Pickering emulsion had a smaller droplet size, more uniform distribution, clearer oil/water interface, and higher static stability of droplets. The sago SNP-Pickering emulsion had the great gelatinous structure and emulsion stability. In addition, the SNP-Pickering emulsion had the better loading efficiency and controlled release performance of curcumin. Meanwhile, the bioavailability of curcumin in sago SNP-Pickering emulsion was highest., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest We declare that we have no financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that can inappropriately influence our work, there is no professional or other personal interest of any nature or kind in any product of the manuscript entitled “Comparison of properties and application of starch nanoparticles optimized prepared from different crystalline starches”., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Starch nanoparticles (SNPs) were prepared by rapid nanoprecipitation using coarse cereal starches, including quinoa, waxy proso millet, non-waxy proso millet, and maize starches (amylose content, 2.20 %-13.96 %). Morphology and dynamic light scattering analyses showed that the particle size of SNPs ranged from 190.35 nm to 310.25 nm. Ultrasonic pretreatment reduced the particle size. Quinoa and waxy proso millet SNPs swelled to flocculent, whereas non-waxy proso millet and maize SNPs showed spherical particles. Quinoa and waxy proso millet SNPs did not completely nucleate after nanoprecipitation. Quinoa SNPs formed a stable network in water, showing great viscoelastic behavior with higher G' and G''. Subsequently, the SNPs suspensions were used to prepare emulsions. The quinoa SNPs-based Pickering emulsion was the smallest and most uniform (12.96 μm), with great stability. These results suggested that the quinoa SNPs suspension with a stable network could be used as an efficient emulsifier for stabilizing Pickering emulsions., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest We declare that we have no financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that can inappropriately influence our work. There is no professional or other personal interest of any nature or kind in any product of the manuscript., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Diabetic foot ulcer is a serious complication in diabetes patients, imposing a serious physical and economic burden to patients and to the healthcare system as a whole. Oxidative stress is thought to be a key driver of the pathogenesis of such ulcers. However, no antioxidant drugs have received clinical approval to date, underscoring the need for the further development of such medications. Hydrogels can be applied directly to the wound site, wherein they function to prevent infection and maintain local moisture concentrations, in addition to serving as a reservoir for the delivery of a range of therapeutic compounds with the potential to expedite wound healing in a synergistic manner. Herein, we synthesized Prussian blue nanoparticles (PBNPs) capable of efficiently scavenging reactive oxygen species (ROS) owing to their ability to mimic the activity of catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POD), and superoxide dismutase (SOD). In the context of in vitro oxidative stress, these PBNPs were able to protect against cytotoxicity, protect mitochondria from oxidative stress-related damage, and restore nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF2)/heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) pathway activity. To expand on these results in an in vivo context, we prepared a thermosensitive poly (d,l-lactide)-poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(d,l-lactide) (PDLLA-PEG-PDLLA) hydrogel (PLEL)-based wound dressing in which PBNPs had been homogenously incorporated, and we then used this dressing as a platform for controlled PBNP release. The resultant PBNPs@PLEL wound dressing was able to improve diabetic wound healing, decrease ROS production, promote angiogenesis, and reduce pro-inflammatory interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels within diabetic wounds. Overall, our results suggest that this PBNPs@PLEL platform holds great promise as a treatment for diabetic foot ulcers.

Quinoa starch nanoparticles (QSNPs) prepared by nanoprecipitation method under the optimal condition was developed as a carrier for quercetin. The QSNPs prepared under the optimal condition (90 DMSO/H 2 O ratio, 10 ethanol/solvent ratio, and ultrasonic oscillation dispersion mode) had the smallest particle size and polymer dispersity index through full factorial design. Compared with maize starch nanoparticles (MSNPs), QSNPs exhibited a smaller particle size of 166.25 nm and a higher loading capacity of 26.62%. Starch nanoparticles (SNPs) interacted with quercetin through hydrogen bonding. V-type crystal structures of SNPs were disappeared and their crystallinity increased after loading with quercetin. QSNPs was more effective in protecting and prolonging quercetin bioactivity because of their small particle sizes and high loading capacities. This study will be useful for preparing starch-based carrier used to load sensitive bioactive compounds., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Investigating the changes in the structural and functional properties of soy protein isolate (SPI) modified by high-performance protein-glutaminase (PG) and understanding their interactions are crucial for the application of SPI nanoparticles. Herein, the thermal stability and activity of PG were evolved by computer-assisted rational design strategy, generating the best variant Z15 (N16M/N20L/Q21H/K48R/S81E/T113E) with a 4.65-fold improved activity (75.57 U/mg) and increased thermal stability (Δ T m = 4.6 °C), one of the best performing PG. SPI treated with Z15 showed better solubility, foaming, and emulsifying properties than the wild type PG-deamidation, which were increased by 1.25-fold, 45.45%, and 38.95%, respectively. Furthermore, SPI treated with Z15 exhibited lower hardness and higher cohesiveness. By systematically analyzing the structural characteristics, SPI nanoparticles possessed a coarse, loose, and porous microstructure. Molecular dynamics simulations suggested that the Glu81 and Glu113 residues of Z15 contributed the most to the stabilization interaction in β-conglycinin-Z15 complexes. These results could provide theoretical guidance for the potential application of SPI nanoparticles in sustainable green plant-based foods industries. [Display omitted] • Z15 exhibited great specific activity (75.57 U/mg) and thermostability (T m 72.4 °C). • SPI nanoparticles treated with Z15 showed dramatic increase in functional properties. • SPI nanoparticles treated with Z15 presented excellent homogeneity and stability. • Glu81 and Glu113 were key residues with big energy contribution in 7S-Z15 complexes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The influence of SiO 2 , CaCO 3 and TiO 2 nanoparticles on the properties of high content calcium silicate phase cement (HCSC) paste has been investigated. • Nanoparticles promote the hydration process and increase mean C-S-H chain. • Nanoparticles change the content of calcium hydroxide and optimized pore distribution. The performance of cement composites was significantly affected by clinker mineral component and nanomaterials. In this work, the effect of clinker mineral component and nanomaterials (nano-SiO 2 , nano-CaCO 3 , and nano-TiO 2) on cement composites were investigated. Results illustrated that the optimal mineral compositions of C 3 S, C 2 S, C 4 AF, and C 3 A were 60.23%, 20.01%, 9.74%, and 10.02%, respectively. With the incorporation of nano-particles, the setting time of HCSC was shortened and strength was significantly enhanced, due to acceleration on hydration and optimization on microstructure. The CH content of HCSC containing nano-SiO 2 was lower than that of reference due to pozzolanic activity at 28d, whereas the reversed results were found in the HCSC containing nano-CaCO 3 and nano-TiO 2 due to the nucleation effect promoting hydration. In addition, nano-particles increased mean silicate chain and Al/Si ratio of calcium-silicate-hydrate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]