In vitro fecal fermentation of acylated porous Canna edulis starch and corresponding stabilized Pickering emulsions

In this study, acylated porous Canna edulis starch with varying degrees of substitution (DS) were prepared and employed for stabilizing Pickering emulsions. Subsequently, the fermentation characteristics of them were investigated. Enzymatically produced porous starch (PS) was esterified with acetic, propionic, butyric, or valeric anhydrides, yielding acetylated (PSA-0.116), propionylated (PSP-0.163), butyrylated (PSB-0.304), and valerylated PS (PSV-0.462) with different DS. Scanning electron microscopy revealed the presence of pores and surface micro-particles in the modified PS, confirming successful esterification through characteristic peaks in 1H NMR and a CO peak at 1736 cm-1 in the FT-IR spectrum. With increasing DS, starch exhibited reduced crystallinity (PSV, 26.61 %), elevated resistant starch content (PSV, 91.63 %), and a higher contact angle (PSV, 87.13°). Acylated PS particles effectively stabilized Pickering emulsions. Pickering emulsions stabilized by acylated PS with higher DS exhibited higher emulsification index and smaller droplet sizes. In vitro fermentation of acylated PS and corresponding stabilized Pickering emulsions fostered short-chain fatty acid production, boosted the relative abundance of beneficial bacteria (Bifidobacterium, Prevotella, etc.) while inhibited the growth of harmful bacteria (Escherichia-Shigella, Comamonas, etc.), maintaining the intestinal microbiota balance. These findings support the potential applications of acylated PS and corresponding stabilized Pickering emulsions in functional foods and drug delivery.

Differential impacts of porous starch versus its octenyl succinic anhydride-modified counterpart on naringin encapsulation, solubilization, and in vitro release

The aim of this work was to evaluate the potentials of porous starch (PS) and its octenyl succinic anhydride modified product (OSAPS) as efficient carriers for loading naringin (NA), focusing on encapsulation efficiency (EE, the percentage of adsorbed naringin relative to its initial amount), drug loading (DL, the percentage of naringin in the complex), structural alterations, solubilization and in vitro release of NA using unmodified starch (UMS) and NA as controls. Both the pore diameter and SBET value of PS decreased after esterification with OSA, and a thinner strip-shaped NA (∼145 nm) was observed in the OSAPS-NA complex and (∼150 nm) in the PS-NA complex. OSAPS exhibited reduced short-range ordered structure, as indicated by a lower R1047/1022 (0.73) compared to PS (0.77). Meanwhile, lowest crystallinity (12.81 %) of NA was found in OSAPS-NA. OSAPS-NA exhibited higher EE and DL for NA than PS-NA and a significant increase in NA saturated solubility in deionized water (by 11.63-fold) and simulated digestive fluids (by 24.95-fold) compared to raw NA. OSAPS contained higher proportions of slowly digestible starch and exhibited a lower digestion rate compared to PS, resulting in a longer time for NA release from its complex during the digestion.

Micro-encapsulation of garlic oil using esterified-wheat porous starch and whey protein isolate: Physicochemical properties, release behavior during in vitro digestion

The study aimed to inhibit the stimulating impact of garlic oil (GO) on the stomach and attain high release in the intestine during digestion. So, wheat porous starch (WPS) was modified with octenyl succinic acid (OSA) and malic acid (MA) to obtain esterified WPS, OWPS and MWPS, respectively. The differences in physicochemical, encapsulation, and digestive properties of two GO microcapsules, WPI/OWPS/GO and WPI/MWPS/GO microcapsules produced by using OWPS and MWPS as variant carrier materials and whey protein isolate (WPI) as the same coating agent, were compared. The results found that OWPS had greater amphiphilicity, while MWPS had better hydrophobicity and anti-digestive ability than WPS. Encapsulation efficiency of WPI/OWPS/GO (94.67 %) was significantly greater than WPI/MWPS/GO (91.44 %). The digestion inhibition and low GO release (approximately 23 %) of WPI/OWPS/GO and WPI/MWPS/GO microcapsules in the gastric phase resulted from the protective effect of WPI combined with the good adsorption and lipophilicity of OWPS and MWPS. Especially, WPI/OWPS/GO microcapsule was relatively stable in the gastric phase and had sufficient GO release (67.24 %) in the intestinal phase, which was significantly higher than WPI/MWPS/GO microcapsule (56.03 %), benefiting from the adsorption and digestive properties of OWPS, and resulting in a total cumulative GO release rate of 90.86 %.

Preparation, characterization and in vitro digestion of octenyl succinic anhydride-modified porous starch with different degrees of substitution

Octenyl succinic anhydride modified porous starch (OSA-PS) with degrees of substitution (DS) from 0.0123 to 0.0427 were prepared by aqueous phase method. From SEM, PS had a porous structure which showed a rough and corrosive surface after esterification with OSA. FT-IR revealed the characteristic peaks of OSA-PS at 1725 cm-1 and 1570 cm-1. From 1H NMR spectra, OSA-PS displayed extra chemical signal peaks at 0.85 ppm, 1.25 ppm and 1.96 ppm. These results fully demonstrated that OSA groups were successfully grafted onto PS. Furthermore, as DS increased, the specific surface area (5.6464 m2/g), pore volume (0.9959 × 10-2 cm3/g) and methylene blue adsorption capacity (24.3962 mg/g) of OSA-PS reached the maximum, while its relative crystallinity (26.8112 %) and maximum thermal decomposition temperature (291.96 °C) were the minimum. In vitro digestion studies showed that with the increase of DS, OSA-PS' contents of rapidly digestible starch and slowly digestible starch decreased from 9.06 % to 6.27 % and 28.38 % to 14.61 %, respectively. In contrast, its resistant starch had an increase in content from 62.56 % to 79.12%. The results provided an effective method for obtaining a double-modified starch with high specific surface area and anti-digestibility, thus broadening the industrial application of starch.

Colon targeted releases and uptakes of paclitaxel loaded in modified porous starch

Hyaluronic acid can modify porous starch through cross-linking and hydrogen bonding, effectively achieving a paclitaxel entrapment efficiency of ∼92 % and drug loading of ∼23 %. In this study, the pores and intergranular gaps of porous starch were filled with paclitaxel under solvent volatilization, and the enrichment process and its characteristics were recorded using a microscope. The paclitaxel-loaded particles were coated with chitosan-phytic acid to target the colon. In vivo imaging in mice showed that the capsule released paclitaxel in the colon rather than in the upper digestive tract, and the paclitaxel distribution in the main organs at 24 h was significantly lower than that of raw paclitaxel. Hyaluronic acid-modified porous starch can target cancer cells. Cell internalization of paclitaxel mediated by hyaluronic acid was approximately 1.97 times that of raw paclitaxel, higher than that of receptor-shielded cells and cells incubated with unmodified carriers, as evidenced by the accumulation of fluorescent paclitaxel in the nucleus and marked cell apoptosis. The hyaluronic acid-modified porous starch system is an effective method for the high-load and targeted release of hydrophobic anticancer drugs.

Modified porous starch for enhanced properties: Synthesis, characterization and applications

Native starches have low water solubility at room temperature and poor stability, which demand modifications to overcome. Porous starch as a modified one shows enhanced adsorptive efficiency and solubility compared with its native starch. In contrast, some inherent disadvantages exist, such as weak mechanical strength and low thermal resistance. Fortunately, modified porous starches have been developed to perform well in adsorption capacity and stability. Modified porous starch can be prepared by esterification, crosslinking, oxidation and multiple modifications to the porous starch. The characterization of modified porous starch can be achieved through various analytical techniques. Modified porous starch can be utilized as highly efficient adsorbents and encapsulants for various compounds and applied in various fields. This review dealt with the progress in the preparation, structural characterization and application of modified porous starch. The objective is to provide a reference for its development, utilization, and future research directions.

Progress and prospects of modified starch-based carriers in anticancer drug delivery

Recently, the role of starch-based carrier systems in anticancer drug delivery has gained considerable attention. Although there are same anticancer drugs, difference in their formulations account for unique therapeutic effects. However, the exploration on the effect-enhancing of anticancer drugs and their loading system by modified starch from the perspective of carrier regulation is still limited. Moreover, research on the reduced toxicity of the anticancer drugs due to modified starch as the drug carrier mediated by the intestinal microenvironment is lacking, but worth exploring. In this review, we examined the effect of modified starch on the loading and release properties of anticancer drugs, and the effect of resistant starch and its metabolites on intestinal microecology during inflammation. Particularly, the interactions between modified starch and drugs, and the effect of resistant starch on gene expression, protein secretion, and inflammatory factors were discussed. The findings of this review could serve as reference for the development of anticancer drug carriers in the future.