Physicochemical Properties of Starch from Dioscorea pyrifolia tubers

Chemical, structural, and techno-functional characterization of yam (Dioscorea) flour from South West Ethiopia

Yam (Dioscorea spp.) is a versatile tuber crop that holds nutritional, cultural, and economic values. Yam is a major source of carbohydrates for tropical Countries and provides various nutrients and health benefits. This study aims to characterize the chemical, structural, and thermal properties of yam flour using various analytical techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and thermal analysis. Additionally, the pasting and rheological properties of yam flour were evaluated, as they are crucial for product development and enhancing the value of this unconventional vegetable. D. cayenensis complex had the highest total starch (64.63 ± 1.61 %) and soluble sugar (4.95 ± 0.46 %) content, which was significantly higher than other yam species. The amylose content of yam flours showed significant (p < 0.05) differences among the yam species. D. cayenensis flour exhibited significantly the highest peak (2923.66 cP) and steak back viscosity (2097.66 cP) among the yam species associated with their greater amylose content. There were notable variations in pasting and gelatinization parameters among the species. The peak temperatures of D. bulbifera and D. cayenensis complex were significantly (p < 0.05) higher than D. cayenensis and D. rotundata flours. The rheological measurements of yam flours demonstrated solid-like behavior with varying intensities. Furthermore, the morphology of tuber yam flour particles was oval to ellipsoidal shaped, with some appearing ovoid, and the smaller granules appearing spherical. The X-ray diffraction showed that all yam flours exhibit a B-type pattern. This study provide a better understanding of this unconventional vegetable's potential applications in the food industry and contribute to its value addition.

Characterization of Polylactic Acid Biocomposites Filled with Native Starch Granules from Dioscorea remotiflora Tubers

Biocomposites were fabricated utilizing polylactic acid (PLA) combined with native starch sourced from mountain's yam (Dioscorea remotiflora Knuth), an underexplored tuber variety. Different starch compositions (7.5, 15.0, 22.5, and 30.0 wt.%) were blended with PLA in a batch mixer at 160 °C to produce PLA/starch biocomposites. The biocomposites were characterized by analyzing their morphology, particle size distribution, thermal, X-ray diffraction (XDR), mechanical, and dynamic mechanical (DMA) properties, water absorption behavior, and color. The results showed that the amylose content of Dioscorea remotiflora starch was 48.43 ± 1.4%, which corresponds to a high-amylose starch (>30% of amylose). Particle size analysis showed large z-average particle diameters (Dz0) of the starch granules (30.59 ± 3.44 μm). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images showed oval-shaped granules evenly distributed throughout the structure of the biocomposite, without observable agglomeration or damage to its structure. XDR and DMA analyses revealed an increase in the crystallinity of the biocomposites as the proportion of the starch increased. The tensile modulus (E) underwent a reduction, whereas the flexural modulus (Eflex) increased with the amount of starch incorporated. The biocomposites with the highest Eflex were those with a starch content of 22.5 wt.%, which increased by 8.7% compared to the neat PLA. The water absorption of the biocomposites demonstrated a higher uptake capacity as the starch content increased. The rate of water absorption in the biocomposites followed the principles of Fick's Law. The novelty of this work lies in its offering an alternative for the use of high-amylose mountain's yam starch to produce low-cost bioplastics for different applications.

Chachafruto starch: Physicochemical characterization, film-forming properties, and 3D printability

This work aimed to characterize the physicochemical, film-forming properties, and 3D printability of a nonconventional starch from chachafruto. The chachafruto native starch (CHS) presented an excellent extraction yield (10 % db) and purity (99 % db), along with an oval and round morphology, a smooth surface with few defects, and a mean diameter of 15.4 μm. The typical B-type diffraction pattern was observed in the CHS with a crystallinity of 17.4 %. The starch presented a paste temperature of 66.1 °C, an enthalpy of 11.5 J g-1, and a final viscosity of 596 Brabender Units. The thermal analysis demonstrated good thermal stability. The evaluated film presented a reduction in crystallinity (8.18 %) to the CHS, which generated a good elasticity in the material. Likewise, it presented a continuous structure without cracks, providing good barrier properties (2.3 × 10-9 g∙m-1∙s-1∙Pa-1) and high transparency. Meanwhile, 3D prints prepared with CHS showed good textural properties and high consistency. The morphological analysis showed that the prints generated organized cell structures. However, high concentrations of CHS were not efficient in obtaining 3D prints. The results of this work demonstrate the tremendous industrial potential of chachafruto as an unconventional source of starch and some alternative uses for adding value to the crop.

A pH-sensitive intelligent packaging film harnessing Dioscorea zingiberensis starch and anthocyanin for meat freshness monitoring

Abundant starch was isolated from Dioscorea zingiberensis C.H. Wright, a novel and underutilized industrial crop resource. In this study, an intelligent packaging film able to indicate food freshness was developed and characterized. D. zingiberensis starch (DZS) was bleached first, and its particle size, total starch content, amylose content, and gelatinization temperature were then measured. Butterfly pea (Clitoria ternatea Linn.) flowers were selected as the source of polyphenols, which rendered the prepared film intelligent and progressively blue-violet. SEM and FT-IR analyses showed the homogeneous dispersion of butterfly pea flower extract (BPE) in the film. The BPE-loaded film showed improved flexibility and resistance to UV and oxidation while maintaining sufficient mechanical strength and physical properties. Moreover, the film underwent a distinguishable color change from red to blue-violet and finally to green-yellow with increasing pH from 2 to 13. Similar color alteration also occurred when the film was exposed to ammonia. When the film was used to monitor the freshness of chicken stored at room temperature, it exhibited an obvious color change, implying its deterioration. Therefore, the newly developed BPE-DZS film, which was produced from readily accessible natural substances, can serve as an intelligent packaging material, indicating food freshness and prolonging shelf life.

Production of a nascent cellulosic material from vegetable waste: Synthesis, characterization, functional properties, and its potency for a cationic dye removal

The present work reports the production of cellulose nanocrystals, CNC₃₀ and CNC₆₀, developed using vegetable waste, i.e., bottle gourd peel through sulfuric acid hydrolysis with a 30 and 60 min hydrolysis process coupled with ultrasonication. The FTIR confirmed the absence of hemicellulose and lignin, and XRD confirmed the crystallinity of the cellulose nanocrystals. DLS studies indicated the hydrodynamic diameter of CNC₃₀ and CNC₆₀ to be 195.5 nm and 192.2 nm, respectively. The TEM image and SAED pattern established the shape of CNC₆₀ to be spherical, with an average particle size of 38.32 nm. CNC₆₀ possessed lesser negative potential and higher thermal stability than CNC₃₀, possibly due to the demolition of the crystalline regions containing sulfate groups. The functional properties, such as swelling power, water, and oil holding capacities of CNC₆₀, were superior to that of CNC₃₀. The adsorption batch parameters yielded 95.68 % methylene dye removal by CNC₆₀ against the predicted value of 96.16 % by the RSM-PSO hybrid approach. The analyses of adsorption isotherms, kinetics, and thermodynamic parameters revealed the nature of the adsorbed layer and adsorption mechanism. Overall observations recommend that CNC₆₀ could be a good and potent functional agent in paper technology, food technology, water treatment, and biomedical applications.

Characterization of isolated starch from Isatis indigotica Fort. root and anhydro-sugars preparation using its decoction residues

Isatis indigotica Fort. root (Ban-lan-gen, IIR), a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), has an ancient and well-documented history for its medicinal properties. Aside from epigoitrin, indole alkaloids, and their corresponding derivatives as medicinal ingredients, it also contains lots of biomass such as starch. Herein, a new starch was isolated from IIR and the physicochemical properties such as amylose content, moisture content, ash content, morphology, thermal properties, and crystallography were characterized systematically. The amylose content of IIR starch was 19.84 ± 0.85%, and the size and shape of starch granules is ellipsoidal shape with sizes from 2 to 10 μm. IIR starch exhibited a C-type pattern and had 25.92% crystallinity (higher than that of corn starch). The gelatinization temperature of IIR starch was 58.68-75.41 °C, and its gelatinization enthalpy was ΔH gel = 4.33 J/g. After decocting, the IIR's residues can be used to prepare anhydro-sugars in a polar aprotic solvent. The total carbon yield of levoglucosan (LG), levoglucosenone (LGO), 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), and furfural (FF) could reach 69.81% from IIR's decoction residues in 1,4-dioxane with 15 mM H2SO4 as the catalyst. Further, the residues after dehydration were prepared into biochar by thermochemical conversion and the BET surface area of biochar was 1749.46 m2/g which has good application prospect in soil improvement and alleviates obstacles of IIR continuous cropping.

Non-conventional starch from cubio tuber (Tropaeolum tuberosum): Physicochemical, structural, morphological, thermal characterization and the evaluation of its potential as a packaging material

This work aimed to characterize the physicochemical, structural, morphological, and thermal properties of a non-conventional starch obtained from cubio (Tropaeolum tuberosum), as well as to evaluate the potential use of this native Andean tuber in the preparation of biodegradable packaging. The cubio starch (CUS) showed an intermediated apparent amylose content (31.2 %) accompanied by a high CIE whiteness index (90.8). About the morphology and particle size, the CUS exhibited irregular oval and round shapes and a smooth surface with a mean particle diameter of 14.04 ± 0.1 μm. Although it showed good stability regarding pasting properties, the final viscosity was low. Native CUS exhibits a typical B-type diffraction structure, with a relative crystallinity of 16 %. The resistant starch (RS) fraction of the CUS was 94 %, indicating a low susceptibility to enzymatic hydrolysis. The thermal analysis demonstrated that the CUS showed good thermal stability. Additionally, the films prepared using CUS as raw material showed continuous surfaces without porosities, good thermal stability, and high transparency. The results of this work demonstrate the industrial potential of the CUS as it presents characteristics comparable to commercial potato starch.

Starch composition and functional properties of raw and pretreated anchote (Coccinia abyssinica (Lam.) Cogn.) tuber flours dried at different temperatures

Anchote (Coccinia abyssinica (Lam.) Cogn.) is an indigenous tuber crop produced in southwest part of Ethiopia. As an indigenous and underutilized tuber, limited scientific information is available about the characteristics of dried anchote powder. In this study, attempts were made to investigate the starch composition and functional properties of flours produced from the raw and pretreated tuber dried at different temperatures (60, 80, and 100°C). The results showed that both pretreatment and drying temperature significantly (p < .05) affected the amylose/amylopectin ratio, pH, total soluble solids (TSS), water absorption capacity (WAC), oil absorption capacity (OAC), water absorption index (WAI), water solubility index (WSI), swelling power (SP), total polyphenols content (TPC), and total flavonoid content (TFC). The treatment combinations result in varied ranges of pH (5.70-6.47), TSS (5.37-10.8 °Brix), WAC (2.42-4.21 g/g), OAC (0.94-1.44 g/g), WAI (3.40-5.42 g/g), WSI (11.40%-20.37%), SP (4.56-7.20 g/g), foaming capacity (FC) (3.31%-33.33%), foam stability (FS) (1.89%-20.00%), amylose content (AC) (14.18%-36.11% ), TPC (0.22-0.80 mg GAE/g), and TFC content (0.12-0.44 mg CE/g). The blanched and boiled anchote flours dried at relatively lower drying temperature exhibited better WAC, SP, and WAI than the raw. Considering the determined parameters, the flour from the tuber can be used as an ingredient in different food formulations.

Structural and Physicochemical Properties of Tunisian Quercus suber L. Starches for Custard Formulation: A Comparative Study

The aim of the present study was to extract starch from acorn (Quercus suber L.) fruits using water and alkaline methods. Structural and functional properties of extracted starches were investigated and compared to those of corn and modified starches in order to determine their innovative potential application in food industry. The yield of extraction using the two methods was about 48.32% and 48.1%. The isolated starches showed low moisture, fat and protein contents, revealing high purity and quality. Additionally, the starch extracted using the alkaline method (AAS) showed higher lightness (60.41) when compared to starch isolated using hot water (WAS). However, the lightest white color was found for studied commercial starches. Moreover, AAS starch exhibited the highest swelling power, solubility and water absorption, followed by WAS and commercial starches. Results showed that extracted acorn starches were characterized by greater enthalpy and gelatinization temperatures. Similar observations were noted using FT-IR spectra analysis for all analyzed starches. In addition, granule starches observed using scanning electron microscopy were found to be spherical and ovoid. However, from the analysis by X-ray diffraction, a crystalline pattern of C-type was found for acorn starches, while commercial starches presented an A-type pattern. As an innovative food application, these underexploited acorn starches were valued and served to produce new custards with improved functional properties and better microstructure when compared to commercial custard.

Secondary Metabolites, Antioxidant, and Antiproliferative Activities of Dioscorea bulbifera Leaf Collected from Endau Rompin, Johor, Malaysia

Breast cancer is among the most commonly diagnosed cancer and the leading cause of cancer-related death among women globally. Malaysia is a country that is rich in medicinal plant species. Hence, this research aims to explore the secondary metabolites, antioxidant, and antiproliferative activities of Dioscorea bulbifera leaf collected from Endau Rompin, Johor, Malaysia. Antioxidant activity was assessed using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and 2,2′-azino-bis-3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonic acid (ABTS) assays, while the cytotoxicity of D. bulbifera on MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 breast cancer cell lines was tested using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Cell cycle analysis and apoptosis were assessed using flow cytometry analysis. Phytochemical profiling was conducted using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Results showed that methanol extract had the highest antioxidant activity in DPPH, FRAP, and ABTS assays, followed by ethyl acetate and hexane extracts. D. bulbifera tested against MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cell lines showed a pronounced cytotoxic effect with IC₅₀ values of 8.96 μg/mL, 6.88 μg/mL, and 3.27 μg/mL in MCF-7 and 14.29 μg/mL, 11.86 μg/mL, and 7.23 μg/mL in MDA-MB-231, respectively. Cell cycle analysis also indicated that D. bulbifera prompted apoptosis at various stages, and a significant decrease in viable cells was detected within 24 h and substantially improved after 48 h and 72 h of treatment. Phytochemical profiling of methanol extract revealed the presence of 39 metabolites such as acetic acid, n-hexadecanoic acid, acetin, hexadecanoate, 7-tetradecenal, phytol, octadecanoic acid, cholesterol, palmitic acid, and linolenate. Hence, these findings concluded that D. bulbifera extract has promising anticancer and natural antioxidant agents. However, further study is needed to isolate the bioactive compounds and validate the effectiveness of this extract in the In in vivo model.

Effects of potassium sulfate on swelling, gelatinizing and pasting properties of three rice starches from different sources

This study evaluates the effects of potassium sulfate (K₂SO₄) on the swelling, gelatinization, and pasting properties of indica rice starch (IRS), japonica rice starch (JRS), and waxy rice starch (WRS). As a result, the gelatinization temperatures (T_p), swelling capacities, and pasting viscosities of rice starches in water followed the order of WRS > JRS > IRS, showing positive correlations to amylopectin content and molecular weight. At K₂SO₄ concentration of 0.05-0.6 M, T_p increased by 10-13 ℃ due to a more compact structure of starch granules resulting from increased interactions of starch chains with K⁺. However, the swelling capacity decreased with increasing K₂SO₄ concentration and followed the order of WRS < JRS < IRS, which decreased sharply from 27.3 to 2.5 g/g for WRS. K₂SO₄ dramatically reduced the pasting viscosity of starch pastes due to the decreased swelling capacity. This study provides the scientific basis for rice starch processing with K₂SO₄.

Prevention properties on cerebral ischemia reperfusion of medicine food homologous Dioscorea yam-derived diosgenin based on mediation of potential targets

I/R (cerebral ischemia reperfusion injury) is the secondary complication of ischemic stroke patients that are immediately treated with drug thrombolysis or vascular recanalization in clinic. Diosgenin (DIO) purified from medicine food homologous (MFH) Dioscorea yam source is served as a fatal starting material to synthesize multifarious steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in medicinal field, and has previously been demonstrated the potential prevention of I/R. However, the detailed mechanisms of neuroprotective effects against I/R remain elusively understood. Here, a global proteomic dynamics of rat right hemisphere brains was executed to investigate the protein expression patterns with a quantitative LC-MSⁿ. In total, 5043 proteins were identified and 418 ones were determined to be significantly dysregulated DEPs (differentially expressed proteins) in comparison of Sham verse I/R and I/R verse DIO after onset stage of I/R, among which 5 DEPs namely BICD2, HNRNPK, CEP41, PPM1K, and ARL2BP, whose biological functions were mainly clustered into the mediation of nervous system, were selected for further validation in vitro and in vivo, and the change tendency expectedly supported the proteomic findings. Additionally, the AUC value of the combined ROC of these 5 DEPs was 0.988 with P < 0.0001, higher than every single one. Collectively, these scientific findings attributed to a typical investigation of dietary Dioscorea-enriched diosgenin in MFH research, suggesting that diosgenin or its derivatives were potential to be developed into food supplements or healthy food products to reveal healthy benefits in natural prevention and reduction risk of I/R. This work also promoted reasonable consumption of Dioscorea yams and contributed to the function of diosgenin-derived products and their applications in food industry.

Morphological and physicochemical characterization of starches from underground stems of Trimezia juncifolia collected in different phenological stages

In this study, starches from underground stems of Trimezia juncifolia were evaluated during dry season (DSS), wet season (WSS) and sprouting (SS). Results evidenced that drought stress did not interfere with the yield, amylose content and degree of polymerization (DP) of amylopectin. However, the extraction yield in SS was 58% lower, being observed and increase of 7.5% in the content of amylose, and 13.5% in DP values for SS amylopectin, with a predominance of A-chains. The amount of total sugar, the starch granules size as well as solubility and swelling properties varied as function of the phenological status. Also, starch granules changed from A-type polymorph in DSS and SS to a C_A-type in WSS. Nevertheless, it was observed a crystallinity reduction from 56% in DSS to 37.1% in SS. In addition, thermograms evidenced the presence of amylose-lipid complexes, with endothermic transition temperatures being affected by drought stress and sprouting. Finally, results demonstrate that underground stems from T. juncifolia have adaptative strategies involving changes in the morphological and physicochemical properties of the starch granules.

The Dioscorea Genus (Yam)-An Appraisal of Nutritional and Therapeutic Potentials

The quest for a food secure and safe world has led to continuous effort toward improvements of global food and health systems. While the developed countries seem to have these systems stabilized, some parts of the world still face enormous challenges. Yam (Dioscorea species) is an orphan crop, widely distributed globally; and has contributed enormously to food security especially in sub-Saharan Africa because of its role in providing nutritional benefits and income. Additionally, yam has non-nutritional components called bioactive compounds, which offer numerous health benefits ranging from prevention to treatment of degenerative diseases. Pharmaceutical application of diosgenin and dioscorin, among other compounds isolated from yam, has shown more prospects recently. Despite the benefits embedded in yam, reports on the nutritional and therapeutic potentials of yam have been fragmented and the diversity within the genus has led to much confusion. An overview of the nutritional and health importance of yam will harness the crop to meet its potential towards combating hunger and malnutrition, while improving global health. This review makes a conscious attempt to provide an overview regarding the nutritional, bioactive compositions and therapeutic potentials of yam diversity. Insights on how to increase its utilization for a greater impact are elucidated.

Nanotechnology and its challenges in the food sector: a review

Antibacterial activity of nanoparticles has received significant attention worldwide because of their great physical and chemical stability, excellent magnetic properties, and large lattice constant values. These properties are predominate in the food science for enhancing the overall quality, shelf life, taste, flavor, process-ability, etc., of the food. Nanoparticles exhibit attractive antibacterial activity due to their increased specific surface area leading to enhanced surface reactivity. When nanoparticles are suspended in the biological culture, they encounter various biological interfaces, resulting from the presence of cellular moieties like DNA, proteins, lipids, polysaccharides, etc., which helps antibacterial properties in many ways. This paper reviews different methods used for the synthesis of nanoparticles but is specially focusing on the green synthesis methods owing to its non-toxic nature towards the environment. This review highlights their antibacterial application mainly in the food sector in the form of food-nanosensors, food-packaging, and food-additives. The possible mechanism of nanoparticles for their antibacterial behavior underlying the interaction of nano-particles with bacteria, (i) excessive ROS generation including hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), OH^- (hydroxyl radicals), and O^- ₂ ² (peroxide); and (ii) precipitation of nano-particles on the bacterial exterior; which, disrupts the cellular activities, resulting in membranes disturbance. All these phenomena results in the inhibition of bacterial growth. Along with this, their current application and future perspectives in the food sector are also discussed. Nanoparticles help in destroying not only pathogens but also deadly fungi and viruses. Most importantly it is required to focus more on the crop processing and its containment to stop the post-harvesting loss. So, nanoparticles can act as a smart weapon towards the sustainable move.

Extraction and Characterization of Tunisian Quercus ilex Starch and Its Effect on Fermented Dairy Product Quality

In this study, a new starch has been isolated from acorn (Quercus ilex) fruits. The chemical composition of acorn flour showed its richness in carbohydrates (64.43%), proteins (8%), and fat (10%). The extraction yield of acorn starch was about 34.5%. Thus, the composition of extracted acorn starch and its physical and functional properties were studied. Acorn starch had high purity represented by low proportions of proteins (0.92%) and lipids (0.51%) with a pH of 5.3. The swelling power was 20.76 g/g, while the solubility was about 64.22% at 90°C which suggests that acorn starch has potential for use in food industries. The FT-IR spectra of isolated native starches have shown the main bands characterizing the starch. However, X-ray diffractograms exhibited an A- and B-type diffraction pattern. Furthermore, the effect of acorn starch incorporation at different levels (0.5%, 1%, 1.5%, and 2%) on the quality parameters of a fermented dairy product was investigated at the beginning of storage. The results demonstrated that the most suitable dose of acorn starch to be incorporated in the fermented dairy product was lower than 1%. This low concentration reduced syneresis, improved functional properties, and enhanced the viscosity of the fermented dairy product.

Extraction and characterization of native starch obtained from the inhambu tuber

Starch is the main carbohydrate consumed by humans, obtained from many vegetable sources and known for its non-toxicity, applications and low cost. The aim of this work was the extraction and study of characteristics of non-conventional starch arising from inhambu (Dioscorea trifida L.). Chemical, physicochemical, thermal, morphological, structural and technological properties were evaluated. The starch yield percentage obtained from the extraction, starch and amylose contents of inhambu starch were considerably high, 22.76%, 84.56% and 36.82% respectively. Native starch presented high purity due the low ash, protein and fat content. The thermogravimetric analysis shown 69% weight loss in a 293.12-476.59 °C temperature range and the endothermic peak was at 100.0 °C. The starch granule morphology shown spherical shapes and smooth surfaces and size ranging from 5.06 to 14.59 µm. Considering the unique starch characteristics, its application in different industrial sectors can be foreseen.

Exploring of greater yam (Dioscorea alata L.) genotypes through biochemical screening for better cultivation in south Gujarat zone of India

Fifteen different genotypes of greater yam (Dioscorea alata) NGY-1, NGY-2, NGY-3, NGY-4, NGY-5, NGY-6, NGY-7, NGY-8, NGY-9, NGY-10, NGY-11, NGY-12, NGY-13, NGY-14 and Da-199 were procured from different places of south Gujarat, like Valsad, Navsari, Surat and Anand. Among the biochemical parameters total carbohydrate ranged between 51.87 and 87.85% from different genotypes, starch ranged from 47 to 80.67%, crude fat ranged from 0.6 to 2.32%, crude fibre ranged between 1.10 and 4.09%, anthocyanin content of genotypes ranged from 1.01 to 3.25 mg/g, beta-carotene content ranged between 0.97 and 1.88 µg/g. The antinutrients namely Diosgenin and Tannin ranged from 0.28 to 0.93% and 0.923 mg/100 g to 2.447 mg/100 g, respectively. RAPD analysis was also done by the help of 18 RAPD markers: OPA1, OPA2, OPA3, OPA13, OPB1, OPB6, OPB7, OPM1, OPM2, OPM4, OPM7, OPM11, OPM12, OPM13, OPM15, OPM16, OPM17 and OPM19 from which an average of 9.7 loci were detected with an average of 4.72 polymorphic loci which is 48.65% polymorphism per loci and 48.70% average polymorphism. From the overall study, it can be conferred that the study revealed highest carbohydrate content in NGY-3 (87.85%), fat (2.32%) and crude fiber content (4.09%) in NGY-11, β-carotene in NGY-7 (1.88 µg/g), anthocyanin in NGY-4(3.25 mg/g). Lowest tannin (0.923 mg/100 g) and diosgenin (0.28%) was found in NGY-6, and NGY-7 respectively. For each of the biochemical parameters, the varieties with the optimum values may be cultivated. As the molecular studies revealed NGY-2 and NGY-3 have 96% similarities, they may be the duplicate of the same genotypes which can be studied further for better germplasm conservation.

Optimization of hot-air drying conditions for cassava flour for its application in gluten-free pasta formulation

The design and development of gluten-free foods requires a comprehensive understanding of the behavior of the raw materials to attain the same cooking and nutritional quality as gluten-based food. The objective of this study was to determine the optimal hot-air drying conditions for elaboration of cassava flour to be used in a gluten-free pasta formulation. The results showed that the operational conditions to minimize the hot-air drying time (57 min) to produce cassava flour with higher water holding capacity was 57 ℃ at 3 m/s. Then, the optimal formulation for the pasta was found to be cassava (26 g/100 g), amaranth flour (12 g/100 g), and carboxymethyl cellulose (0.23 g/100 g), which maximized the A_w (0.160), moisture content (3.10 g/100 g), hardness (5.02 N), and protein content (9.30 g/100 g), and it is used for the sensorial analysis, which showed that an earthy taste was the main problem with consumer satisfaction.

Characterisation comparison of polysaccharides from Dioscorea opposita Thunb. growing in sandy soil, loessial soil and continuous cropping

This study compared the characterisations of polysaccharides from Chinese yam (Dioscorea opposita Thunb.) growing in sandy soil (SSCY), loessial soil (LSCY) and second-year continuous cropping (CCCY). SSCY contained the highest total polysaccharides (36.55%) and 80.19% glucose, CCCY from sandy soil obtained 24.55% polysaccharides with 43.66% glucose, whereas LSCY contained 27.54% total polysaccharides and 7.94% glucose. The results indicated that Dioscorea opposita from sandy soil may obtain higher level of glucose. CCCY increased the galacturonic acids in yams from 7.03% to 26.19%, which may have been caused by the decrease in soil pH due to continuous cropping. The starches of SSCY and CCCY from sandy soil belongs to C-type, whereas the starch of LSCY from loessial soil has the A-type pattern. The results suggested that the two types of soil and continuous cropping change the compounds and contents of yams, which provide valuable evidences for cropping management and allelopathy effects.

Molecular structure of starch isolated from jackfruit and its relationship with physicochemical properties

The molecular structure of starches isolated from five jackfruits (M2, M3, M4, M8 and X1) and its relationship with physicochemical properties were investigated. Although they had uniform amylose (AM) content, the five jackfruit starches displayed different physicochemical properties, including their pasting, thermal, crystal and texture properties. Furthermore, differences in the molecular structure (i.e., average weight-average molar mass (Mw) of amylose and amylopectin (AP) as well as the same AP fine structure) were also found in the five jackfruit starches. The results indicated that jackfruit starch with a larger Mw of amylose and proportions of DP 25–36, DP ≥ 37 and chain length had a lower peak viscosity, breakdown, final viscosity, setback and adhesiveness, but a higher pasting and gelatinization temperature, gelatinization temperature range, gelatinization enthalpy and relative crystallinity. Xiangyinsuo 1 hao (X1) starch, which originated from Xinglong in Hainan province, China, had special physicochemical properties, which were ascribed to its lower amylopectin Mw, smaller particle size, and perfect amylopectin structure. The results showed that the most important intrinsic factors that could determine the physicochemical properties of starch were its molecular structure, including the Mw of amylose and AP as well as a fine AP structure.

Development and characterization of cassava starch films incorporated with blueberry pomace

This work is focused on the development of renewable and biodegradable films by the valorisation of wastes from food processing industries, with the aim of contributing to the development of more sustainable films. In this context, different contents of blueberry pomace (BP) were incorporated into cassava starch (CS) film forming solutions and the functional properties of the films prepared by solution casting were investigated, specifically, thermal, optical and physicochemical properties. BP-incorporated films showed good barrier properties against light, indicating their beneficial effect to prevent food deterioration caused by UV radiation when these films are used for food packaging applications. These results were related to the presence of aromatic compounds in BP, which can absorb light at wavelengths below 300nm. Furthermore, all films maintained their structural integrity after immersion in water (24h) and the maximum swelling displayed was lower than 300%. Additionally, the release of active compounds from BP into food simulants (after 10days) showed higher migration into the acetic acid medium in comparison with the ethanol medium. Therefore, the incorporation of BP into CS film forming solution resulted in the improvement of film performance, suggesting the potential application of these films as active packaging.