Starch and Food Processing: Structure, Functionality and Nutrition

Dear Colleagues,

Starch is present as a macro-constituent in foods, and its properties are of interest to the food industry and for human nutrition. In recent years, the health-conscious consumer market has shifted to sustainable and natural foods due to prioritizing health, wellness, and social and environmental awareness, and hence a greater understanding of how processing alters the functionality of starch is required. Variations in the processing techniques and settings generally induce significant differences in the multi-scale structure of starch and the interactions among starch and other major food constituents, subsequently leading to a distinct rate and extent of digestion/fermentation in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) and health effects. Hence, being able to predict starch’s functionality using knowledge of its structure and explain how starch interacts with other major food constituents during food processing is a significant subject in food science, nutrition, and the food industry. The research outcomes will contribute to optimizing and developing innovative processing techniques to facilitate the design and production of starch-based food products with enhanced nutritional values.

We are pleased to invite you to submit articles addressing recent advances and trends in food processing and their impact on the control of starch functionality, its digestion and fermentation in the GIT, and the quality of starchy foods. We will especially welcome articles with a particular focus on the mechanisms underlying the structural changes in starch during processing, and the design rules, modifications, methodologies, and technologies that are employed to enhance the quality and nutrition of starch, thus supporting the design and production of high-quality and nutritious starchy foods.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Evaluation of nutritional properties of starch/starchy foods in terms of digestion and fermentation using in vitro, in vivo, and in silico models;
• Mechanisms underlying the structural changes in starch and its interaction with other major food components (lipids, proteins, bioactive compounds, etc.) during processing;
• Processing-induced structural changes and their impact on starch functionality, digestion, fermentation, and starchy food quality;
• Biochemical mechanisms associated with the digestion and fermentation of starch in the human GIT.

I/We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Chen Chao
Prof. Dr. Haiteng Li
Guest Editors

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