Structural, functional and emulsifying properties of wheat corn, chickpea and OSA-modified chickpea starches, a comparative study

This study aimed to improve the physicochemical and functional properties of chickpea starch through chemical modification with octenyl succinic anhydride (OSA). Starch was extracted from chickpeas and chemically modified by OSA with a maximum degree of substitution (0.0152) in 5 h (reaction time). The characteristics of OSA-chickpea starch were compared to those of native chickpea starch, corn starch, and wheat starch. The chemical composition values demonstrated that the extracted chickpea starch was pure, and the isolation technique was very effective for legume starch isolation. OSA-chickpea starch with a higher absolute value of zeta-potential illustrated greater turbidity, oil absorption capacity (OAC), water holding capacity (WHC), emulsion stability, and freeze–thaw stability than native starches during storage. The foaming problem and gel syneresis of OSA-chickpea starch were significantly (p < 0.05) lower than native starches. The highest swelling powers and solubility indexes were detected for chickpea and OSA-chickpea starches at 85 °C and for corn and wheat starches at 95 °C. The results of texture analysis (compression and puncture tests) showed that the OSA-chickpea starch produced a more stable gel texture with less breaking force than the other starches. The FTIR spectra indicated that the OSA-modification was successfully done, and this process could alter the starch from hydrophilic to dual hydrophobic-hydrophilic molecules and improve the physicochemical and functional characteristics of chickpea starch.