Revealing the Structural Organization of Starch From Native Potatoes Using Polarization-Resolved Second Harmonic...

Area of Science:

• Agricultural Science
• Food Science
• Materials Science

Background:

• Starch physicochemical properties can vary even within the same botanical source.
• Understanding these variations is key for optimizing starch applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the structural and functional characteristics of starch from five Indian potato varieties.
• To analyze starch properties in both native and hydrolyzed forms.

Main Methods:

• In vitro enzymatic hydrolysis to determine dextrose equivalent (DE) profiles.
• Optical microscopy for granule morphology.
• X-ray diffraction (XRD) for crystallinity.
• Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy for chemical bonds.
• Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) for gelatinization temperatures.
• Second harmonic generation (SHG) microscopy for high-resolution structural imaging.

Main Results:

• Amylose content ranged from 17.5% to 25%.
• Native starch granules were ovoid/elliptical with A-type crystal structures.
• DSC revealed variations in gelatinization peak temperatures.
• SHG microscopy provided detailed insights into starch crystallinity patterns.

Conclusions:

• Potato starch exhibits diverse structural and functional properties influenced by variety.
• These findings support optimizing potato starch use in food and non-food industries.
• Tailoring potato varieties for specific digestibility profiles could benefit nutraceutical development.