Description

• General description: Starch is a carbohydrate reserve in plants and a major source of energy for humans. In plants, starch is found in chloroplasts of leaf and in the amyloplasts of tuber and seeds.[1][2] Structurally, starch consists of two major polysaccharides, namely amylose and amylopectin. Both consists of chains of -(1,4)-linked D-glucose residues interconnected through -(1,6)-glycosidic linkages.[2] Potato starch is superior to others, functionally, because of its low lipid level.[1] Nutritional composition of starch comprises of rapidly digestible starch, slowly digestible starch, and resistant starch (RS). Amylases are the starch degrading enzymes.[3] Starch digestibility affects the blood glucose levels and is controlled by factors like carbohydrate contents of foods, nutritional composition of starch and cooking foods.[4] Inhibition of pancreatic amylase is of therapeutic importance for delaying starch digestion, to prevent postprandial hyperglycemia.[4][5] Food industries use starch as thickening agent.[6]
• Application: Starch from potato has been used as a substrate for α-amylase inhibition assay, by use of raw and cooked food samples[4] and aerial parts of Trichosanthes cucumerina Linn[5], as a substrate to determine SusG activity, in animal gut microbiota activity using DNSA assay[7].
• Other Notes: To gain a comprehensive understanding of our extensive range of Polysaccharides for your research, we encourage you to visit our Carbohydrates Category page.