Technofunctional, rheological, thermal and structural properties of gorgon nut ( Eurayle ferox ) as affected by drying temperature

Esterified unpopped foxnut (Euryale ferox) starch: molecular and rheological characterization

BACKGROUND

Acetylated-based starches are broadly used in the food industry as emulsifiers, and as thickening and film-forming agents. Better understanding of the structural and rheological parameters would facilitate the selection of optimal acetylated starches for particular applications. Nuclear magnetic resonance (¹ H-NMR), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns, and rheological properties, including elasticity (G'), loss (G") moduli, complex viscosity (η*) and study shear stress (δ), were determined for acetylated fox nut starch (FNS) samples.

RESULTS

The degree of substitution (DS) varied significantly with increasing acetyl concentration from 2-6%. Nuclear magnetic resonance analysis of acetylated FNS showed an additional chemical shift at 2.08 ppm in comparison with native FNS, confirming the linking of the H or the -OCH3 group. The acetylated FNS starches showed better short-range ordering of molecules, as confirmed by FTIR. A significant increase in the functional and gelatinization properties with increasing acetyl concentration was observed. The power law parameters (n, K) and dynamic moduli (G' and G") increased with increasing acetyl concentration and presented shear thinning behavior. The gelatinization peak temperature and enthalpy decreased with increasing acetyl concentration.

CONCLUSION

The observed DS below 2.5 would mean safe food consumption and the significant alteration of functional and structural properties with varying acetyl content will extend the use of FNS in food and allied industries. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Euryale ferox, a prominent superfood: Nutritional, pharmaceutical, and its economical importance

Euryale ferox (also known as foxnut), belongs to the family Nymphaeaceae. It is mainly grown in India, China, Japan, and Korea. It is a highly nutritious food, abundant in nutritional and bioactive compounds such as carbohydrates, protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals, and polyphenols. It is considered a functional food owing to its various health benefits such as antidiabetic, antihyperlipidemic, antifatigue, hepatoprotective, cardioprotective, antimelanogenic, etc. E. ferox has immense potential in both food and non-food industries. Regardless of being recognized as a superfood packed with nutritional as well as medicinal properties, it is still neglected, and there has not been much attention given to its cultivation. Therefore, in this review, the potential of E. ferox as a superfood has been explored to enhance its utilization in the development of different foods and make it available outside its growing area. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Euryale ferox is abundant in several macronutrients and micronutrients; and considered as a superfood in terms of various health benefits. E. ferox has the ability to be used in the development of different health, functional, and nutraceutical foods, which will open a new door for the food industry to combat with numerous diseases.

Impacts of Policy-Driven Transformation in the Livelihoods of Fishermen on Agricultural Landscape Patterns: A Case Study of a Fishing Village, Island of Poyang Lake

The agricultural landscape patterns of fishing village have undergone visible transformations in recent decades. Scholars pay less attention to fishermen with diverse livelihoods. Therefore, it is necessary to sort out the changing characteristics of fishermen’ livelihoods and agricultural landscape patterns under different policy periods. We use in-depth interviews, remote sensing technology, and mathematical analysis to systematically study the changes in fishermen’s livelihoods and in agricultural landscape patterns in a typical fishing village. The results show that policy have profoundly affected fishermen’ livelihoods. Livelihood transformation have altered local land use practices, which had a direct impact on agricultural landscape patterns. The livelihood of fishermen has changed from diverse to single, and their cropping structure were gradually becoming simpler and more specialised. After grazing ban and comprehensive fishing ban, many fishermen migrated to towns and cities, it accelerated the loss of population in the fishing village, which caused the amount of abandoned land increasingly. Left-behind fishermen became rice farmers by contracting abandoned paddy fields. The expanses of abandoned land and bamboo woodland had increased, which caused agricultural landscape patterns gradually becoming fragmented, heterogeneous and complex.