Relationships between starch pasting properties, free fatty acids and amylose content in barley

Relatively few studies have examined the influence of lipids or fatty acids on starch pasting properties in barley. The aim of this study was to evaluate the use of the Rapid Visco Analyser (RVA) as a tool to examine changes in starch functionality related with free fatty acids (FFAs) and amylose content in barley flour samples. Changes in RVA parameters such as setback (STB) and final viscosity (FV) were related to differences in both FFA (oleic and palmitic acids) and amylose contents due to the diverse barley genotypes analysed. The magnitude of the RVA profile values derived from samples having high a concentration of palmitic acid (3900 mg/g) was lower compared with that having the lower concentration of the same FFA (2470 mg/g), displaying low FV (5666 vs 4166 cP) and low STB (1625 vs 1174 cP) values. Similar trends were observed for the other FFA measured. These results showed that pasting properties of barley measured using RVA are determined by a complexity of parameters, where the combination of lipids (FFA) and amylose might determine the characteristics of the material and its final use (e.g. malting).

► The rapid visco analyser was evaluated relationships between lipid and amylose. ► Rapid visco analyser patterns related to amylose and lipids were identified. ► The effect of locality on lipid and amylose interaction was also evaluated.