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Updated: Jun 3, 2026

Film Extrusion of Crambe abyssinica/Wheat Gluten Blends
Published on: January 17, 2017
Structure and morphology of wheat gluten films: from polymeric protein aggregates toward superstructure arrangements
Ramune Kuktaite1, Tomás S Plivelic, Yngve Cerenius
1Department of Agriculture-Farming Systems, Technology and Product Quality, The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Alnarp, Sweden. ramune.kuktaite@ltj.slu.se
Abstract:
Evaluation of structure and morphology of extruded wheat gluten (WG) films showed WG protein assemblies elucidated on a range of length scales from nano (4.4 Å and 9 to 10 Å, up to 70 Å) to micro (10 microm). The presence of NaOH in WG films induced a tetragonal structure with unit cell parameters, a = 51.85 Å and c = 40.65 Å, whereas NH(4)OH resulted in a bidimensional hexagonal close-packed (HCP) structure with a lattice parameter of 70 Å. In the WG films with NH(4)OH, a highly polymerized protein pattern with intimately mixed glutenins and gliadins bounded through SH/SS interchange reactions was found. A large content of β-sheet structures was also found in these films, and the film structure was oriented in the extrusion direction. In conclusion, this study highlights complexities of the supramolecular structures and conformations of wheat gluten polymeric proteins in biofilms not previously reported for biobased materials.
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