Effect of ball milling treatment on the structural, physicochemical and digestive properties of wheat starch, A- and B-type starch granules

New insights into how freeze-drying and cryo-milling affects the fine structure and digestibility of gelatinized starch

Freeze-drying (FD) and cryo-milling (CM) are common methods for preparing powder gelatinized starch samples. This study investigates the structural characterization of raw/gelatinized maize starches and digestibility after FD/CM processes to elucidate their effect on starch digestibility determination. Results showed that FD slightly increased digestibility, while higher initial glucose content in CM samples, especially for gelatinized samples. Only FD retained the granular morphology and relative crystallinity (RC), while gelatinized-FD decreased RC by 75%. CM decreased RC by 12%, while gelatinized-CM decreased it by 97%. Combined with short-range and chain structural results, FD tended to disrupt internal connected chains through volume stress, while CM cleaved glycosidic bonds in external chain. Stretched chains in gelatinized starch promoted the breakage of chains during shearing and their efficient binding with digestive enzymes. These findings would provide a basis for pre-treatment of powder samples and processes of starch- rich foods.

Study on the physicochemical properties and gut microbiota regulation of Poria cocos pachyman treated by ball milling

The effect of ball milling on the physicochemical properties and gut microbiota regulation of Poria cocos pachyman (PAC) was investigated. Ball milling reduced the particle size of PAC from 102 μm to 25.19 μm after 12 h, resulting in increasing particle uniformity. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed surface roughening and fragmentation of PAC after ball milling. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) indicated reduced crystallinity and increased hydroxyl group exposure in ball-milled PAC (BMP). Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) showed decreased thermal stability in BMP. The optimal ball milled time was 7 h. Moisture contents in PAC and BMP-7 h were 10.30 ± 0.47 % and 10.72 ± 0.12 %, and carbohydrate contents were 81.02 ± 2.27 % and 74.54 ± 1.46 %. In vivo studies on mice demonstrated that both PAC and BMP-7 h increased diversity and reshaped the composition of gut microbiota, with BMP-7 h showing a more pronounced effect. BMP-7 h reduced the Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio, and raised the abundance of Bacteroides, suggesting enhanced prebiotic potential. These findings highlight the role of ball milling in improving the physicochemical properties and prebiotic potential of water-insoluble polysaccharides and provide a theoretical basis for its broader application in the food and biopharmaceutical industries.

Effects of ball milling treated wheat flour and maltodextrin on the texture and oil absorption properties of fried batter-coated cashews and almonds

In this study, the effects of wheat flour treated with ball milling (BM) and maltodextrin on the oil absorption and textural characteristics of fried batter-coated cashews and almonds (BCAs) were investigated. The result showed that the crystallinity of the starch granules in wheat flour decreased after the BM treatment. Furthermore, the ΔH of the batter decreased as the BM time was elongated, but the addition of maltodextrin had no significant impact on ΔH. Both BM-treated wheat flour and maltodextrin increased the fracturability and decreased the oil content of the fried BCAs' batter. The addition of BM-treated wheat flour and maltodextrin decreased the oil content of the batter from 28.93% to 18.75% for batter-coated cashews and from 30.92% to 18.61% for batter-coated almonds. Overall, the addition of BM-treated wheat flour and maltodextrin in batter is an effective approach to decrease oil content and improve the textural quality of fried BCAs.

Deep-Eutectic-Solvent-in-Water Pickering Emulsions Stabilized by Starch Nanoparticles

Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) have received extensive attention in green chemistry because of their ease of preparation, cost-effectiveness, and low toxicity. Pickering emulsions offer advantages such as long-term stability, low toxicity, and environmental friendliness. The oil phase in some Pickering emulsions is composed of solvents, and DESs can serve as a more effective alternative to these solvents. The combination of DESs and Pickering emulsions can improve the applications of green chemistry by reducing the use of harmful chemicals and enhancing sustainability. In this study, a Pickering emulsion consisting of a DES (menthol:octanoic acid = 1:1) in water was prepared and stabilized using starch nanoparticles (SNPs). The emulsion was thoroughly characterized using various techniques, including optical microscopy, transmission microscopy, laser particle size analysis, and rheological measurements. The results demonstrated that the DES-in-water Pickering emulsion stabilized by the SNPs had excellent stability and retained its structural integrity for more than 200 days at room temperature (20 °C). This prolonged stability has significant implications for many applications, particularly in the field of storage and transportation. This Pickering emulsion based on DESs and SNPs is sustainable and stable, and it has great potential to improve green chemistry practices in various fields.

A comparative study on the gel and structural characteristics of starch from three rice varieties when combined with Mesona chinensis polysaccharides

Mesona chinensis polysaccharide (MCP) has excellent gel-forming characteristic, previous studies showed that MCP could affect the gelling and structural properties of rice starch, but the effect of MCP on rice starch from different types is not clarified. In this study, the effects of MCP on the pasting, rheological, and structural characteristics of glutinous rice starch (GRS), japonica rice starch (JRS), and indica rice starch (IRS) were investigated. The results showed that GRS-MCP has the best viscosity, its peak and final viscosities are higher than JRS-MCP and IRS-MCP. The gel network structure was enhanced by MCP in the order of IRS > JRS > GRS, which was reflected by greater elasticity, higher gel strength and hardness, and less free water in JRS-MCP and IRS-MCP. MCP also enhanced the ordered structure and thermal stability of the three starch gels, which is conducive to their application in the market. These findings provide new theoretical insights to produce rice starch-based foods.

Starch nanoparticles with predictable size prepared by alternate treatments of ball milling and ultrasonication

In this study, starch nanoparticles (SNPs) were prepared by alternate treatments of liquid nitrogen ball milling and ultrasonication. The impact, shear and friction forces produced by ball milling, and acoustic cavitation and shear effects generated by ultrasonication disrupted starch granules to prepare SNPs. The SNPs possessed narrow particle size distribution (46.91-210.52 nm) and low polydispersity index (0.28-0.45). Additionally, the SNPs exhibited the irregular fragments with good uniformity. The relative crystallinity decreased from 34.91 % (waxy corn starch, WCS) to 0-25.91 % (SNPs), and the absorbance ratios of R1047/1022 decreased from 0.81 (WCS) to 0.60-0.76 (SNPs). The SNPs had lower thermal stability than that of WCS, characterized by a decrease in Td (temperature at maximum weight loss) from 309.39 °C (WCS) to 300.39-305.75 °C (SNPs). Furthermore, the SNPs exhibited excellent swelling power (3.48-28.02 %) and solubility (0.34-0.97 g/g). Notably, oil absorption capacity of the SNPs (9.77-15.67 g/g) was rather greater than that of WCS (1.33 g/g). Furthermore, the SNPs possessed the lower storage modulus (G'), loss modulus (G″) and viscosity than that of WCS. The SNPs with predictable size and high dispersion capability prepared in this study lay a foundation for expanding the application of SNPs.

Designing healthier and more sustainable ultraprocessed foods

The food industry has been extremely successful in creating a broad range of delicious, affordable, convenient, and safe food and beverage products. However, many of these products are considered to be ultraprocessed foods (UPFs) that contain ingredients and are processed in a manner that may cause adverse health effects. This review article introduces the concept of UPFs and briefly discusses food products that fall into this category, including beverages, baked goods, snacks, confectionary, prepared meals, dressings, sauces, spreads, and processed meat and meat analogs. It then discusses correlations between consumption levels of UPFs and diet-related chronic diseases, such as obesity and diabetes. The different reasons for the proposed ability of UPFs to increase the risk of these chronic diseases are then critically assessed, including displacement of whole foods, high energy densities, missing phytochemicals, contamination with packaging chemicals, hyperpalatability, harmful additives, rapid ingestion and digestion, and toxic reaction products. Then, potential strategies to overcome the current problems with UPFs are presented, including reducing energy density, balancing nutritional profile, fortification, increasing satiety response, modulating mastication and digestion, reengineering food structure, and precision processing. The central argument is that it may be possible to reformulate and reengineer many UPFs to improve their healthiness and sustainability, although this still needs to be proved using rigorous scientific studies.

Effects of heat-moisture treatment on structural characteristics and in vitro digestibility of A- and B-type wheat starch

In this study, A- and B-type wheat starch granules (AWS and BWS) were separated and modified by heat-moisture treatment (HMT) with different moisture content (10 %-40 %). The effects of HMT on the structure characteristics and digestibility of raw/cooked AWS and BWS were investigated by SEM, FT-IR, XRD, DSC, TGA and NMR. SEM and FT-IR results showed that BWS was more sensitive to HMT than AWS. Interestingly, crystalline conformation of AWS and BWS changed from A type to A + V type after HMT, and the relative crystallinity (V-type) of starch increased to 2.7 % and 3.4 %, respectively. XRD and NMR results verified the formation of V-type crystalline structure. The resistant starch (RS) content of cooked starch was increased, especially for BWS (from 11.46 % to 28.29 %). Compared to the cooked starch, the RS content of raw AWS and BWS was affected by relative crystallinity and the size of starch granules. Furthermore, structure characteristics and digestion kinetics results indicated that the digestion rate of cooked AWS increased due to the deconstruction of starch chains, opposite to BWS (because of the more V-type crystals). The results enrich our understanding of the mechanism of digestion subjected to HMT by different grain sizes of the same wheat starch.

The effect of non-thermal physical modification on the structure, properties and chemical activity of starch: A review

Non-thermal physical treatments has obvious advantages in regulating the structure and properties of starch compared with chemical treatment. Hance, this article summarized and compared the effects of three kinds of non-thermal physical treatments including grinding and ball milling, high hydrostatic pressure and ultrasonic on the structure, properties and chemical activity of starches from different plants. The potential applications of non-thermal physical modified starch were introduced. And strategies to solve the problems in the current research were put forward. It is found that although starch has a dense structure, the starch granules could be deformed under three kinds of non-thermal physical treatments, which could damage the granule morphology, microstructure, and crystal structure of starch, reduce particle size, increase solubility and swelling power, and promote starch gelatinization. Three kinds of non-thermal physical treated starch could be used as flocculant thickener, starch based edible films and fat substitutes. Non-thermal physical treatments caused the structure of starch to undergo three stages, which were similar to mechanochemical effects. When starch was in the stress stage and the transition stage from aggregation to agglomeration, its active sites significantly increase and move inward, ultimately leading to a significant increase in the chemical activity of starch.

A review of green methods used in starch-polyphenol interactions: physicochemical and digestion aspects

The interactions of starch with lipids, proteins, and other major food components during food processing are inevitable. These interactions could result in the formation of V-type or non-V-type complexes of starch. The starch-lipid complexes have been intensively studied for over five decades, however, the complexes of starch and polyphenols are relatively less studied and are the subject of recent interest. The interactions of starch with polyphenols can affect the physicochemical properties and its digestibility. The literature has highlighted several green methods such as ultrasound, microwave, high pressure, extrusion, ball-milling, cold plasma etc., to assist interactions of starch with polyphenols. However, comprehensive information on green methods to induce starch-polyphenol interactions is still scarce. Therefore, in light of the importance and potential of starch-polyphenol complexes in developing functional foods with low digestion, this review has summarized the novel green methods employed in interactions of starch with flavonoids, phenolic acids and tannins. It has been speculated that flavonoids, phenolic acids, and tannins, among other types of polyphenols, may have anti-digestive activities and are also revealed for their interaction with starch to form either an inclusion or non-inclusion complex. Further information on the effects of these interactions on physicochemical parameters to understand the chemistry and structure of the complexes is also provided.

Starch granules and their size distribution in wheat: Biosynthesis, physicochemical properties and their effect on flour-based food systems

Starch is a vital component of wheat grain and flour, characterized by two distinct granule types: A-type starch (AS) with granules larger than 10 µm in diameter, and B-type starch (BS) with granules measuring no more than 10 µm in diameter. This review comprehensively evaluates the isolation, purification, and biosynthesis processes of these types of granules. In addition, a comparative analysis of the structure and properties of AS and BS is presented, encompassing chemical composition, molecular, crystalline and morphological structures, gelatinization, pasting and digestive properties. The variation in size distribution of granules leads to differences in physicochemical properties of starch, influencing the formation of polymeric proteins, secondary and micro-structures of gluten, chemical and physical interactions between gluten and starch, and water absorption and water status in dough system. Thus, starch size distribution affects the quality of dough and final products. In this review, we summarize the up-to-date knowledge of AS and BS, and propose the possible strategies to enhance wheat yield and quality through coordinated breeding efforts. This review serves as a valuable reference for future advancements in wheat breeding.

Effects of ultrasound-induced V-type rice starch-tannic acid interactions on starch in vitro digestion and multiscale structural properties

V-type starch-polyphenol complexes, known for their improved physicochemical properties compared to native starch, are challenging to form efficiently. In this study, the effects of tannic acid (TA) interaction with native rice starch (NS) on digestion and physicochemical properties were investigated using non-thermal ultrasound treatment (UT). Results showed the highest complexing index for NSTA-UT3 (∼ 0.882) compared to NSTA-PM (∼0.618). NSTA-UT complexes reflected the V6I-type complex having six anhydrous glucose per unit per turn with peaks at 2θ = 7°, 13°, and 20°. The maxima of the absorption for iodine binding were suppressed by the formation of V-type complexes depending on the concentration of TA in the complex. Furthermore, rheology and particle size distributions were also affected by TA introduction under ultrasound, as revealed by SEM. XRD, FT-IR, and TGA analyses confirmed V-type complex formation for NSTA-UT samples, with improved thermal stability and increased short-range ordered structure. Ultrasound-induced addition of TA also decreased the hydrolysis rate and increased resistant starch (RS) concentration. Overall, ultrasound processing promoted the formation of V-type NSTA complexes, suggesting that tannic acid could be utilized for the production of anti-digestion starchy foods in the future.

Exploring the influence mechanism of water grinding on the gel properties of corn starch based on changes in its structure and properties

BACKGROUND

At present, most studies have focused on the preparation of modified starches by dry grinding. As an excellent starch plasticizer, water might enhance the action of grinding on the structure of starch granules, and water grinding might improve the gel properties of starch. Therefore, this article explored the influence mechanism of water grinding on the gel properties of corn starch based on the changes in its structure and properties.

RESULTS

The results showed that water grinding could make water enter the starch granules and hydrate the starch molecules, and the starch gelatinized after water grinding for 20 min. Thus, water enhanced the action of grinding on the structure of the starch granules. Under the plasticization and grinding action of water grinding, the mechanochemical effect of the starch granules occurred. When the starch was in the aggregation stage (7.5-10 min), the crystallinity of the starch increased, and the starch molecules rearranged into a more stable structure, which increased apparent viscosity (η), elastic modulus (G') and viscous modulus (G″) of the starch gels.

CONCLUSION

Therefore, appropriate water grinding (10 min) contributed to increasing the viscoelasticity of starch gels. This study provided a theoretical foundation for research on improving the properties of starch by mechanical modification in future. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Effect of Ball-Milling on Starch Crystalline Structure, Gelatinization Temperature, and Rheological Properties: Towards Enhanced Utilization in Thermosensitive Systems

Starch's crystalline structure and gelatinization temperature might facilitate or hinder its use. Ball milling has frequently been mentioned in the literature as a method for reducing starch size and as a more environmentally friendly way to change starch, such as by increasing surface area and reactivity, which has an impact on other starch properties. In this study, starch samples were milled for varying durations (1, 5, 10, 20, and 30 h) and at different starch-to-ball mass ratios (1:6 and 1:20). Microscopy and XRD revealed that prolonged milling resulted in effective fragmentation and a decrease in crystallinity of the starch granules. Increasing milling times resulted in an increase in amylose content. Rheology and thermal studies revealed that gelatinization temperatures dropped with milling duration and that viscosity and thixotropy were directly influenced. The samples milled for 10, 20, and 30 h at a ratio of 1:20 were the most fragmented and upon drying formed a transparent film at ambient temperature, because of the lower gelatinization temperature. Starch ball milling could lead to the use of this material in thermosensitive systems.

Starch Modification with Molecular Transformation, Physicochemical Characteristics, and Industrial Usability: A State-of-the-Art Review

Starch is a readily available and abundant source of biological raw materials and is widely used in the food, medical, and textile industries. However, native starch with insufficient functionality limits its utilization in the above applications; therefore, it is modified through various physical, chemical, enzymatic, genetic and multiple modifications. This review summarized the relationship between structural changes and functional properties of starch subjected to different modified methods, including hydrothermal treatment, microwave, pre-gelatinization, ball milling, ultrasonication, radiation, high hydrostatic pressure, supercritical CO₂, oxidation, etherification, esterification, acid hydrolysis, enzymatic modification, genetic modification, and their combined modifications. A better understanding of these features has the potential to lead to starch-based products with targeted structures and optimized properties for specific applications.

Ball-milling: A sustainable and green approach for starch modification

Ball-milling is a low-cost and green technology that offers mechanical actions (shear, friction, collision, and impact) to modify and reduce starch to nanoscale size. It is one of the physical modification techniques used to reduce the relative crystallinity and improve the digestibility of starch to their better utility. Ball-milling alters surface morphology, improving the overall surface area and texture of starch granules. This approach also can improve functional properties, including swelling, solubility, and water solubility, with increased energy supplied. Further, the increased surface area of starch particles and subsequent increase in active sites enhance chemical reactions and alteration in structural transformations and physical and chemical properties. This review is about current information on the impact of ball-milling on the compositions, fine structures, morphological, thermal, and rheological characteristics of starch granules. Furthermore, ball-milling is an efficient approach for the development of high-quality starches for applications in the food and non-food industries. There is also an attempt to compare ball-milled starches from various botanical sources.

Analysis and Research on Starch Content and Its Processing, Structure and Quality of 12 Adzuki Bean Varieties

Investigating starch properties of different adzuki beans provides an important theoretical basis for its application. A comparative study was conducted to evaluate the starch content, processing, digestion, and structural quality of 12 adzuki bean varieties. The variation ranges of the 12 adzuki bean varieties with specific analyzed parameters, including the amylose/amylopectin (AM/AP) ratio, bean paste rate, water separation rate, solubility, swelling power and resistant starch (RS) content level, were 5.52-39.05%, 44.7-68.2%, 45.56-54.29%, 6.79-12.07%, 11.83-15.39%, and 2.02-14.634%, respectively. The crystallinity varied from 20.92 to 37.38%, belonging to type BC(The starch crystal type is mainly type C, supplemented by type B). In correlation analysis, red and blue represent positive and negative correlation, respectively. Correlation analysis indicated that the termination temperature of adzuki bean starch was positively correlated with AM/AP ratio. Therefore, the higher the melting temperature, the better the freeze-thaw stability. The 12 varieties were divided into Class I, Class II, and Class III by cluster analysis, based on application field. Class I was unsuitable for the diabetics' diet; Class II was suitable for a stabilizer; and Class III was suitable for bean paste, mixtures, and thickeners. The present study could provide a theoretical basis for their application in the nutritional and nutraceutical field.