Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “STARCH”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1994

Formation and Deposition of Amylose in the Potato Tuber Starch Granule Are Affected by the Reduction of Granule-Bound Starch Synthase Gene Expression.

The synthesis of amylose in amyloplasts is catalyzed by granule-bound starch synthase (GBSS). GBSS gene expression was inhibited via antisense RNA in Agrobacterium rhizogenes-transformed potato plants. Analysis of starch production and starch granule composition in transgenic tubers revealed that reduction of GBSS activity always resulted in a reduction of the production of amylose. Field experiments, performed over a 2-year period, showed that stable inhibition of GBSS gene expression can be obtained. Microscopic evaluation of iodine-stained starch granules was shown to be a sensitive system for qualitative and quantitative examination of amylose formation in starch granules of transgenic potato tubers. In plants showing inhibition of GBSS gene expression, the reduced amylose content in tuber starch was not a consequence of a lower amylose content throughout the entire starch granule. Starch granules of transgenic tubers were found to contain amylose at a percentage similar to wild-type starch in a core of varying size at the hilum of each granule. This indicated that reduced GBSS gene expression results in amylose formation in a restricted zone of the granules. The size of this zone is suggested to be dependent on the GBSS protein level. During development of the granules, the available GBSS protein is thought to become limiting, resulting in the formation of starch that lacks amylose. RNA gel blot analysis of tuber tissue showed that inhibition of GBSS gene expression resulted in a reduced GBSS mRNA level but did not affect the expression level of other starch synthesizing enzymes. Antisense RNA could only be detected in leaf tissue of the transgenic plants.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1987

Biodegradable microspheres. X: Some properties of polyacryl starch microparticles prepared from acrylic acid-esterified starch.

Acrylic acid-esterified starch was produced by reacting starch with acrylic acid chloride. This reaction was rapid and easy to control. Introduction of acrylic groups into starch reduced the enzymatic degradability of starch (e.g., with 12 acrylic groups/100 glucose residues, approximately 75% of the degradation products eluted before glucose on gel filtration). The degradability could be increased to a large extent by preincubation at pH 5.5 in vitro (e.g., after 16 weeks, the corresponding figure was approximately 15%). The acrylic acid-esterified starch was used to prepare polyacryl starch microparticles. These were rapidly eliminated from the circulation after iv injection in mice, mainly by uptake in the liver. The elimination of the microparticles from the liver, monitored with [14C]starch, displayed a half-life of approximately 3.5-4.5 months. After 5 and 6 months, approximately 30% of the initial radioactivity remained in the liver. This is equivalent to the amount anticipated from the enzymatic degradation of the monomer (acrylic acid-esterified starch) in vitro and the innate nondegradability of the 14C-marker. These results, taken together, indicate that the ester bond between starch and the hydrocarbon chain in polyacryl starch microparticles is hydrolyzed at lysosomal pH.

Animals↗
PubMed2007

Accumulation of multiple-repeat starch-binding domains (SBD2-SBD5) does not reduce amylose content of potato starch granules.

This study investigates whether it is possible to produce an amylose-free potato starch by displacing the amylose enzyme, granule-bound starch synthase I (GBSSI), from the starch granule by engineered, high-affinity, multiple-repeat family 20 starch-binding domains (SBD2, SBD3, SBD4, and SBD5). The constructs were introduced in the amylose-containing potato cultivar (cv. Kardal), and the starches of the resulting transformants were compared with those of SBD2-expressing amylose-free (amf) potato clones. It is shown that a correctly sized protein accumulated in the starch granules of the various transformants. The amount of SBD accumulated in starch increased progressively from SBD to SBD3; however, it seemed as if less SBD4 and SBD5 was accumulated. A reduction in amylose content was not achieved in any of the transformants. However, it is shown that SBDn expression can affect physical processes underlying granule assembly, in both genetic potato backgrounds, without altering the primary structure of the constituent starch polymers and the granule melting temperature. Granule size distribution of the starches obtained from transgenic Kardal plants were similar to those from untransformed controls, irrespective of the amount of SBDn accumulated. In the amf background, granule size is severely affected. In both the Kardal and amf background, apparently normal oval-shaped starch granules were composed of multiple smaller ones, as evidenced from the many "Maltese crosses" within these granules. The results are discussed in terms of different binding modes of SBD.

Amylose↗
PubMed2003

Contrasting effects of non-starch polysaccharide and resistant starch-based diets on the disposition and excretion of the food carcinogen, 2-amino-3-methylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline (IQ), in a rat model.

It has commonly been believed that increasing fibre in the diet should reduce the incidence of cancers, especially those of the colon and rectum. The earliest definitions of dietary fibre restricted the term to plant cell walls in which non-starch polysaccharides are key chemical components. However, new definitions encompass a wider range of materials, including starches resistant to digestion in the colon (resistant starches). Nevertheless, most definitions require that "dietary fibres" show physiological effects considered beneficial against cancer, including enhanced laxation and faecal bulking. On theoretical grounds, such properties might be expected to dilute the concentration of any carcinogen present and move it more rapidly through the colon, thereby reducing bioavailability. We have compared the properties of two dietary fibre preparations that are primarily non-starch polysaccharides with two resistant starch preparations for effects on carcinogen disposition in a rodent model. Although both preparations enhanced laxation and faecal bulking, only the non-starch polysaccharide preparation reduced carcinogen biovailability. Indeed, carcinogen biovailability was significantly enhanced by resistant starch. We suggest that there may be fundamental differences in the manner by which non-starch polysaccharides or resistant starches affect carcinogen disposition, and express concern that the events seen with the resistant starches [RS] are unlikely to be beneficial with respect to protection against cancer by exogenous carcinogens. Furthermore, the data reveal that the observation of enhanced laxation and faecal bulking does not necessarily imply a reduction in carcinogen bioavailability.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Molecular degradation rate of rice and corn starches during acid-methanol treatment and its relation to the molecular structure of starch.

The degradation rates of rice and corn starches with different contents of amylose treated in methanol containing 0.36% HCl at 25 degrees C for 1-15 days were evaluated by monitoring the weight average degree of polymerization of starch. A two-stage degradation pattern during acid-methanol treatment was found for the starches studied, which were the slow (first) and the rapid (second) degradation stages. Waxy starches showed a shorter time period of the first stage than that of nonwaxy starch. Rice starch showed a shorter time period of the first stage and a higher degradation rate of the second stage than the counterpart corn starch with similar amylose content. Despite the botanic source and amylose content of starch, the degradation rate of starch in the second stage significantly (p < 0.05) correlated to the S/L ratio (r = -0.886) and polydispersity (r = 0.859) of amylopectin branch chains of native starch.

Amylose↗
PubMed2000

Starches, resistant starches, the gut microflora and human health.

Starches are important as energy sources for humans and also for their interactions with the gut microflora throughout the digestive tact. Largely, those interactions promote human health. In the mouth, less gelatinised starches may lower risk of cariogensis. In the large bowel, starches which have escaped small intestinal digestion (resistant starch), together with proteins, other undigested carbohydrates and endogenous secretions are fermented by the resident microflora. The resulting short chain fatty acids contribute substantially to the normal physiological functions of the viscera. Specific types of resistant starch (e.g. the chemically modified starches used in the food industry) may be used to manipulate the gut bacteria and their products (including short chain fatty acids) so as to optimise health. In the upper gut, these starches may assist in the transport of probiotic organisms thus promoting the immune response and suppressing potential pathogens. However, it appears unlikely that current probiotic organisms can be used to modulate large bowel short chain fatty acids in adults although resistant starch and other prebiotics can do so. Suggestions that starch may exacerbate certain conditions (such as ulcerative colitis) through stimulating the growth of certain pathogenic organisms appear to be unfounded. Short chain fatty acids may modulate tissue levels and effects of growth factors in the gut and so modify gut development and risk of serious disease, including colo-rectal cancer. However, information on the relationship between starches and the microflora is relatively sparse and substantial opportunities exist both for basic research and food product development.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Reduction of starch granule size by expression of an engineered tandem starch-binding domain in potato plants.

Granule size is an important parameter when using starch in industrial applications. An artificial tandem repeat of a family 20 starch-binding domain (SBD2) was engineered by two copies of the SBD derived from Bacillus circulans cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase via the Pro-Thr-rich linker peptide from Xyn10A from Cellulomonas fimi. SBD2 and a single SBD were introduced into the amylose-free potato mutant, amf, using appropriate signal sequences. The accumulation of SBD2 into transgenic starch granules was much higher than that of SBD. In a number of transformants, particularly amfSS3, the starch granules were much smaller than in control plants. The amfSS3 mean granule size was 7.8 microm, compared with 15.2 microm in the control, whereas other starch properties were unaltered. This new starch combines the advantage of the high purity of potato starch with that of the small granule size of other crop species, such as cassava, taro and wheat. This starch may find application in the manufacture of biodegradable plastic films. Both genes were also expressed in Escherichia coli and the affinity for soluble starch of the purified recombinant proteins was determined. SBD2 had an approximately 10-fold higher affinity for starch than SBD, indicating that the two appended SBDs act in synergy when binding to their target polysaccharide ligand.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1991

Molecular identification and comparison of the starch synthase bound to starch granules between endosperm and leaf blades in rice plants.

Normal (nonglutinous) rice plants (Oryza sativa and O. glaberrima) contain more than 18% amylose in endosperm starch, while waxy (glutinous) plants lack it in this starch. In contrast, leaf starch contained more than 3.6% amylose even in waxy plants. SDS-PAGE analysis of proteins bound to endosperm starch granules in the normal plants revealed a single band with a Mr of 60 kd, whereas waxy plants did not exhibit a similar band. The activity of starch synthase (NDP-glucose-starch glucosyltransferase) was completely inhibited by antibody against the 60-kd protein. Thus, we conclude that the 60-kd protein is the waxy protein encoded by the Wx allele, which also plays a role in the synthesis of nonglutinous starch in endosperm tissue. In leaf blades, the proteins bound to starch granules separated into five bands with Mr's of 53.6 to 64.9 kd on SDS-PAGE. Analysis of these proteins by immunoblotting using antiserum against Wx protein and inhibition of starch synthase activity by the synthase antibody revealed that none of these proteins was homologous to Wx protein. We suggest that the synthesis of amylose in leaf blades is brought about by a protein encoded by a gene(s) different from the Wx gene expressed in the endosperm.

Amylose↗
PubMed2002

Production of a freeze-thaw-stable potato starch by antisense inhibition of three starch synthase genes.

The use of unmodified starches in frozen foods is severely limited by the undesirable textural changes that occur after freezing and thawing. Retrogradation of glucan chains leads to syneresis, a separation of the starch gel and water phases. Stabilization of the starch structure is normally achieved by chemical modification to prevent these changes from occurring. We have now created a freeze-thaw-stable potato starch by alteration of starch composition and structure by genetic modification. An amylose-free starch with short-chain amylopectin was produced by simultaneous antisense downregulation of three starch synthase genes. This starch is extremely freeze-thaw-stable and shows no syneresis even after five freeze-thaw cycles. The use of this starch has potential for environmental and consumer benefits because its production requires no chemical modification.

Amylopectin↗
PubMed2003

Barley sex6 mutants lack starch synthase IIa activity and contain a starch with novel properties.

Analysis of barley shrunken grain mutants has identified lines with a novel high amylose starch phenotype. The causal mutation is located at the sex6 locus on chromosome 7H, suggesting the starch synthase IIa (ssIIa) gene as a candidate gene altered by the mutation. Consistent with this hypothesis, no evidence of SSIIa protein expression in either the starch granule or soluble fractions of the endosperm was found. Sequences of the starch synthase IIa gene, ssIIa, from three independent sex6 lines showed the presence of a stop codon preventing translation of the ssIIa transcript in each line. Perfect segregation of the starch phenotype with the presence of stop codons in the ssIIa gene was obtained, providing strong evidence for the lesion in the ssIIa gene being the causal mutation for the sex6 phenotype. The loss of SSIIa activity in barley leads to novel and informative phenotypes. First, a decrease in amylopectin synthesis to less than 20% of the wild-type levels indicates that SSIIa accounts for the majority of the amylopectin polymer elongation activity in barley. Secondly, in contrast to high amylose starches resulting from branching enzyme downregulation, the sex6 starches have a shortened amylopectin chain length distribution and a reduced gelatinisation temperature. Thirdly, the mutation leads to pleiotropic effects on other enzymes of the starch biosynthesis pathway, abolishing the binding of SSI, branching enzyme IIa and branching enzyme IIb to the starch granules of sex6 mutants, while not significantly altering their expression levels in the soluble fraction.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Evidence that a 77-kilodalton protein from the starch of pea embryos is an isoform of starch synthase that is both soluble and granule bound.

In this paper we provide further evidence about the nature of a 77-kD starch synthase (SSII) that is both soluble and bound to the starch granules in developing pea (Pisum sativum L.) embryos. Mature SSII gives rise to starch synthase activity when expressed in a strain of Escherichia coli lacking glycogen synthase. In transgenic potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.) expressing SSII, the protein is both soluble and bound to the starch granules. These results confirm that SSII is a starch synthase and indicate that partitioning between the soluble and granule-bound fraction of storage organs is an intrinsic property of the protein. A 60-kD isoform of starch synthase found both in the soluble and granule-bound fraction of the pea embryos is probably derived by the processing of SSII and is a different gene product from GBSSI, the exclusively granule-bound 59-kD isoform of starch synthase that is similar to starch synthases encoded by the waxy genes of cereals and the amf gene of potatoes. Consistent with this, expression in E. coli of an N-terminally truncated version of SSII gives rise to starch synthase activity.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2002

Structure-retrogradation relationship of rice starch in purified starches and cooked rice grains: a statistical investigation.

Amylose content and amylopectin chain length distribution, the two most commonly used structural parameters of starch, have significant effects on starch retrogradation. In the present work, starches were separated and purified from 18 rice cultivars. The amylopectin was purified from each starch. Amylopectin chain length distribution was analyzed by high-performance size-exclusion chromatography after debranched using isoamylase. The blue value was used to measure the amylose content before and after the defatting of starch. The amount of amylose associated with lipid was calculated. Pulsed nuclear magnetic resonance was used to follow the retrogradation of starch both in cooked rice grains and in the purified form. The Avrami equation was employed to describe the retrogradation kinetics of rice starch. To look into the relationship between the starch structure and retrogradation behavior, the structural parameters were correlated with retrogradation kinetics parameters using both Pearson and partial correlations. The results indicated the following: first, the retrogradation behavior of rice starch remains similar in both the purified form and cooked rice grains; second, the peak value of amylopectin short-chain length has a significant positive relationship with the amylopectin crystallization rate constant k; third, the amylose content after defatting has a significant positive relationship with the parameter k and a negative relationship with the Avrami exponent n; and fourth, the amount of amylose associated with lipid has a negative relationship with the parameter k.

Amylopectin↗
PubMed1982

Starch blockers--their effect on calorie absorption from a high-starch meal.

It has been known for more than 25 years that certain plant foods, such as kidney beans and wheat, contain a substance that inhibits the activity of salivary and pancreatic amylase. More recently, this antiamylase has been purified and marketed for use in weight control under the generic name "starch blockers." Although this approach to weight control is highly popular, it has never been shown whether starch-blocker tablets actually reduce the absorption of calories from starch. Using a one-day calorie-balance technique and a high-starch (100 g) meal (spaghetti, tomato sauce, and bread), we measured the excretion of fecal calories after normal subjects had taken either placebo or starch-blocker tablets. If the starch-blocker tablets had prevented the digestion of starch, fecal calorie excretion should have increased by 400 kcal. However, fecal calorie excretion was the same on the two test days (mean +/- S.E.M., 80 +/- 4 as compared with 78 +/- 2). We conclude that starch-blocker tablets do not inhibit the digestion and absorption of starch calories in human beings.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Butyrylated starch is less susceptible to enzymic hydrolysis and increases large-bowel butyrate more than high-amylose maize starch in the rat.

Large-bowel fermentation of resistant starch produces SCFA that are believed to be important in maintaining visceral function. High-amylose maize starch (HAMS) and acylated starches are sources of resistant starch and are an effective means of increasing colonic SCFA. Cooking increases digestibility of starches but its effects on the capacity of these starches to raise large-bowel SCFA are unknown. We have examined the effects of cooking of HAMS and butyrylated HAMS (HAMSB) on amylolysis in vitro and their capacity to raise caeco-colonic SCFA in rats. The starches were boiled in excess water and microwaved, followed by drying at 100 degrees C. Cooking increased in vitro glucose release for both starches but significantly less from HAMSB. Rat growth rates were unaffected when fed cooked resistant starch. Digesta pH was increased in the caecum and proximal colon of rats fed cooked HAMS. Distal colonic pH was highest in rats fed cooked HAMSB. Factorial analyses (2x2) of caecal SCFA pools showed significant differences between HAMS and HAMSB, and that cooking significantly lowered caecal butyrate pools. Portal venous butyrate concentrations were higher in both HAMSB groups than those fed HAMS. The data suggest that HAMSB is less susceptible to in vitro amylolysis than HAMS following cooking and delivers more butyrate to rat caecum than HAMS. This attribute may be useful in food applications for specific delivery of SCFA to the colon. Preparation of carbohydrates to simulate human food in animal experiments may be important to assess nutritional and physiological effects accurately.

Amylose↗
PubMed1992

Incomplete digestion of legume starches in rats: a study of precooked flours containing retrograded and physically inaccessible starch fractions.

The digestibility of starch in precooked flours from green coat lentils (Lens culinaris Medik) and red kidney beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) was investigated by balance experiments using rats treated with antibiotics to suppress hind-gut fermentation. The legume preparations were rich in intact cells filled with denaturated starch and contained retrograded amylose. Between 8% (beans) and 11% (lentils) of the total starch ingested appeared in the feces, indicating a relatively low starch digestibility. Red bean flours of two different particle sizes were similarly digested. Sixty percent of the fecal starch in the bean-fed animals and 70% in the lentil-fed group was retrograded amylose. The in vitro indigestible starch content of the flours was evaluated with three different methods that gave rather different values. The retrograded amylose fraction, measured after alkaline treatment of a dietary fiber residue obtained by enzymic digestion, was quantitatively recovered in the feces. None of the procedures gave accurate estimates of the total in vivo indigestible starch. Fecal excretion of starch in rats not treated with antibiotics indicated that the indigestible starch in lentils was less susceptible to fermentation than that in the red bean preparations.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

Microsatellites in starch-synthesizing genes in relation to starch physicochemical properties in waxy rice ( Oryza sativa L.).

Rice starch is composed of amylose and amylopectin. Amylose content, an important determinant of rice starch quality, is primarily controlled by the waxy gene, encoding granule-bound starch synthase (GBSS). The starch branching enzyme (SBE) and soluble starch synthase (SSS) play major roles in the synthesis of amylopectin. Microsatellite polymorphisms in the three genes, the wx gene encoding granule-bound starch synthase I, the SBE gene encoding starch branching enzyme I and the SSS gene encoding soluble starch synthase I, were studied for 56 accessions of waxy rice ( Oryza sativa L.). Four (CT)(n) microsatellite alleles, (CT)(16), (CT)(17), (CT)(18) and (CT)(19), at the wx locus were detected in this set of waxy rice, of which (CT)(17) was the most frequent. Three (CT)(n) microsatellite allele classes were found at the SBE locus, (CT)(8) or (CT)(10) together with an insertion sequence of CTCTCGGGCGA, and (CT)(8) alone without the insertion. There were multiple microsatellites clustered at the SSS locus. However, these alleles can also be grouped into three classes, i.e. the allele class SSS-A = (AC)(2) em leader TCC(TC)(11) em leader (TC)(5)C(ACC)(11), the allele class SSS-B = (AC)(3) em leader TCT(TC)(6) em leader (TC)(4)C(ACC)(9), and the allele class SSS-C = (AC)(3) em leader TCT(TC)(6) em leader (TC)(4)C(ACC)(8). The analyses of starch physicochemical properties among different microsatellite genotypes indicated that the waxy rice group with the (CT)(19) allele, the SBE-A allele and the SSS-B allele was quite different from other groups. Nine out of 15 accessions with a high gelatinization temperature (GT) belonged to the wx (CT)(19) group, all of them belonged to the SBE-A group and 13 of them belonged to the SSS-B group. These microsatellites might be useful in marker-assisted breeding for the improvement of rice grain quality.

Journal Article↗