Physicochemical and structural properties of starches isolated from corn cultivars grown in Indian temperate climate

Starches isolated from five corn cultivars namely C4, C5, C6, C8, and C15 were investigated for their physicochemical and structural properties. The amylose content of corn starches varied from 24.74 to 30.32 g/100 g among the cultivars. The starch granules showed polyhedral granule shapes and differences in their mean granule size ranged from 2.3 to 19.5 m. The starch samples showed A-type diffraction pattern with strong reflection at 15.25, 18.11, and 23.33 degrees. Pasting profile, textural, and thermal properties of corn starch showed the cultivar differences. Raman spectroscopy showed the major band intensities at 1340, 1082, 940, 865, 523, 485, 440, and 412 cm(-1). Syneresis and turbidity of gelatinized pastes of starches varied among the cultivars and increased progressively with the increase in storage period. The present study can be used for identifying differences between corn genotypes for starch quality and could provide guidance to possible industries for their end use.