C.C. Seow

Methods for the study of starch retrogradation

Abstract The wealth of current knowledge on starch retrogradation is due in large measure to the wide array of analytical methods at the disposal of food scientists. Since retrogradation is a complex process affected by many factors, it is unlikely that any single method would be able to give a complete picture of the retrogradation properties of starch gels at both the macroscopic and molecular levels. Independent evidence derived from two or more methods allows cross comparisons that can provide a fuller understanding of this phenomenon. For quantitative measurement of rates of retrogradation, the “ideal” method should be simple, rapid, non-destructive, precise, and inexpensive. Comparisons of kinetic data from different sources should be made with caution; various factors (thermal history, in particular) that can lead to unjustifiable comparisons and erroneous conclusions should be carefully considered first. This review covers the general principles, capabilities, advantages, and limitations of various methods available to study starch retrogradation.

On the roles of protein and starch in the aging of non-waxy rice flour

Abstract Changes in pasting and thermal properties of non-waxy rice flour and its isolated starch during storage at 25, 35 and 45°C were compared. Aging had no apparent effect on the pasting behaviour of the isolated starch, but markedly affected that of the flour. Peak viscosity ( V p ) of rice flour pastes generally increased with both temperature and time of storage, but reached a plateau within 4 weeks of storage at 45°C. Fresh flour paste exhibited lower V p , a slower rise in apparent viscosity, and much better stability than an isolated starch paste. The addition of isolated oryzenin to isolated rice starch resulted in pasting behaviour which more closely approximated that of an extensively aged flour. DSC scans of fresh flour at ∼13% moisture revealed a weak heat-irreversible endothermic event over the temperature range from 47 to 66°C which was attributed to the denaturation of oryzenin. This transition was shifted to higher temperatures with increasing storage temperature and time. It also became increasingly skewed and broadened until it was no longer detectable after the flour had been stored at 45°C for 8 weeks. Starch gelatinization characteristics of both flour and isolated starch, as determined by DSC, were apparently unaffected by aging. However, rice flour exhibited significantly higher onset temperature of gelatinization, but lower gelatinization enthalpy, than isolated rice starch. Similarly, pulsed NMR studies showed no apparent effect of aging on retrogradation behaviour of rice flour or starch gels. These results suggest that modification of the protein component, rather than starch, was primarily responsible for rheological changes associated with aging of rice flour.

Modification of the microstructural and physical properties of konjac glucomannan-based films by alkali and sodium carboxymethylcellulose

Abstract Edible films were cast from konjac glucomannan (KGM) solutions, with or without added alkali (KOH) and/or sodium carboxymethylcellulose (CMC). Four types of KGM-based films (KGM, KGM–KOH, KGM–CMC and KGM–CMC–KOH) were produced and characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), moisture sorption, water vapour permeability (WVP), and tensile tests. Tensile properties were studied as a function of water activity ( a w ) over the range from 0.22 to 0.84. SEM revealed that films, with and without KOH, exhibited cross-sectional lamellar structures running perpendicular and parallel, respectively, to the film surface. Alkali treatment produced films with enhanced crystallinity, lower water-sorptive capacity (WSC) and WVP, and higher tensile properties. These effects were attributed to alkaline deacetylation of KGM molecules which permitted greater intermolecular interactions. The presence of CMC appeared to suppress crystallinity of native KGM films, but enhanced that of deacetylated KGM films. Films incorporating CMC exhibited higher WSC and WVP, but variable tensile properties depending on alkali treatment and a w . The tensile properties of all KGM-based films were profoundly affected by a w . Tensile modulus (TM) of all films were antiplasticized as a w was increased from 0.22 to 0.43, but tensile strength (TS) was generally plasticized by water. Tensile elongation of KGM, KGM–KOH, and KGM–CMC–KOH films was generally much less sensitive to water. However, KGM–CMC films exhibited minimum elongation, attributed to antiplasticization by water, over the intermediate a w range from 0.43 to 0.69. KGM–CMC–KOH films exhibited the highest TM and TS at any particular a w .

Effects of Na2CO3 and NaOH on DSC thermal profiles of selected native cereal starches

The effects of Na2CO3 and NaOH (at a concentration of 1 g alkalising agent/100 g dry starch) on the gelatinisation properties of 1:4 and 2:3 starch/water mixtures were studied using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The starches studied included wheat, rice, waxy rice, corn and waxy corn. The addition of Na2CO3 or NaOH resulted in significant increases in transition temperatures (onset, peak and conclusion), associated with starch gelatinisation, suggesting a stabilisation of the starch granules, probably through electrostatic interactions between Na+ ions and starch hydroxyl groups. The presence of Na2CO3 generally caused a significant reduction in gelatinisation enthalpy (ΔHG) of the higher moisture (1:4) systems, but had no effect in the less hydrated (2:3) systems. NaOH generally had no effect on ΔHG of 1:4 systems, but gave rise to inconsistent effects in the 2:3 systems. Heating of alkali-containing samples above the gelatinisation temperature range gave rise to an intriguing exothermic peak, the origin of which was attributed to repolymerisation of the products of alkaline hydrolysis of starch. A separate experiment, conducted to investigate the influence of increasing Na2CO3 concentration (up to 3 g/100 g starch) on thermal properties of 1:4 waxy rice starch/water systems, showed a gradual increase in gelatinisation transition temperatures, a general decline in ΔHG, and a marginal decrease in peak temperature of the repolymerisation exotherm.