Scanning electron microscopy images were taken of starch granules from different sources following exposure in vivo and in vitro to gut alpha-amylases isolated from Tenebrio molitor L. (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) and Zabrotes subfasciatus Boheman (Coleoptera: Bruchidae). One alpha-amylase was isolated from whole larval midguts of T. molitor using non-denaturing SDS-PAGE, while two other alpha-a...

The effect of nitrogen fertilization of maize on fermentability of maize grain in the rumen was studied by means of in vitro method based on the measurement of gas produced during the incubation of samples with rumen liquor. Gas production was recorded continuously up to 72 h incubation time and cumulative gas production was described by the Gompertz equation Y=A*exp(-exp(-d*(t-tm))). Seven tre...

Cereal Chem. 78(4):442–446 In this study, 3% aqueous high-amylose maize starch (Hylon VII) dispersions were heated to temperatures of 140–165°C. The onset and rate of gel formation was observed using a small-strain oscillation rheometer as a function of temperature from 90 to 25°C. The gel formation clearly began earlier in high-amylose starch paste preheated at lower temperatures, but the rate...

Increased use of whole-plant maize for anaerobic digestion (AD) in Europe raises the question: Are maize cultivars developed for use in animal nutrition equally appropriate as feedstock for AD or should different phenotypes be selected? The main objective in growing whole-plant maize as feedstock for AD is maximum output of methane per hectare. There is less need for rapidly digested plant comp...

The effects of different forms of resistant potato starch (RS) on the major microbial population groups and short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) in the cecum and feces of rats were studied over a 5-mo feeding period. Thirty 8-wk-old male Wistar rats, averaging 210 g initial body weight, were adapted for 7 d to a balanced basal diet containing 60% waxy maize starch devoid of any RS. On d 8, three grou...

In this study, the rheological properties of three distinct dextrans with different levels (1 → 6)-linked α-D-glucose/(1 3)-linked α-D-glucose units from lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains were determined. Dextran PDER21 was further selected following measurements and its interactions maize, wheat waxy maize starches determined by characterizing viscoelastic pasting dextran–starch mixtures. Fou...

Gelatinized wheat, potato and waxy maize starches were treated enzymatically in order to increase the degree of branching of the amylopectin fraction and thereby change the starch degradation profile towards a higher proportion of slowly digestible starch (SDS). The materials were characterized by single-pulse (1)H HR-MAS NMR spectroscopy and in vitro digestion profile according to the Englyst ...

Cationic waxy corn starch was prepared from waxy corn starch with 2,3epoxypropyl trimethyl ammonium chloride (ETMAC) as a cationic etherifying reagent. Its structure was identified by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray powder diffraction (XRD). The results showed that quaternary ammonium groups were introduced successfully into the waxy...

The potential contamination of ancient residues from both modern plant sources and sediments adjacent to archaeological contexts can complicate interpretation in the field of starch grain analysis, thus affecting the sustainable use of the method in archaeobotany. In this study, we examined two potential sources of contamination at a wheat field in Shandong Province and a maize field in Beijing...

Mutations affecting specific starch biosynthetic enzymes commonly have pleiotropic effects on other enzymes in the same metabolic pathway. Such genetic evidence indicates functional relationships between components of the starch biosynthetic system including starch synthases (SS), starch branching enzymes (BE), and starch debranching enzymes (DBE), however, the molecular explanation for these f...