The effects of soluble and insoluble dietary fibers from unextruded and extruded rice bran on the pasting properties, thermal properties, retrogradation properties, crystallinity properties and microstructure of rice starch were studied. The interaction between dietary fibers from extruded rice bran and rice starch was investigated by means of texture analysis, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The results showed that compared with un-extruded rice bran dietary fibers, soluble and insoluble dietary fibers from extruded rice bran significantly increased the breakdown value by 74.09% and 128.36%, respectively, but significantly decreased the peak viscosity, trough viscosity, final viscosity, peak time, and pasting temperature of rice starch. Soluble dietary fibers from extruded rice bran facilitated the transformation of free water into strongly bound water in rice starch gels, while insoluble dietary fibers from extruded rice bran promoted the transformation of free water into weakly bound water. Compared with un-extruded rice bran dietary fibers, soluble and insoluble dietary fibers from extruded rice bran decreased the setback value of rice starch by 62.59% and 44.81%, respectively, and also decreased the retrogradation rate, relative crystallinity, hardness, cohesion, resilience, gumminess, chewiness and ratio between peak heights at 1047 cm^-1 and 1022 cm^-1 of rice starch gels. The surface of starch gels added with extruded rice bran soluble and insoluble dietary fibers was smoother with larger crack, showing that extrusion improved the inhibitory effect of rice bran dietary fibers on the retrogradation of rice starch, and extruded soluble dietary fiber had a more prominent effect than extruded insoluble dietary fibers.

Starch is one of the key determinants of dough formation. Its multi-scale structure and physicochemical properties significantly impact the development of the gluten network in dough, thereby ultimately affecting the quality of flour-based products. During the dough formation process, starch granules not only integrate into the gluten network via physical interactions, thus influencing gluten network development in dough, but also modulate the processing characteristics of dough through chemical interactions (such as covalent and non-covalent bonds) with gluten proteins. The multi-scale structure of starch granules determines their physicochemical properties, including gelatinization behavior and hydration capacity, which in turn affect their role in the formation of gluten network. However, there is currently a lack of comprehensive analysis on the relationship between the multi-scale structure of starch and the formation of dough gluten network. This paper systematically elucidates the multi-scale structure of wheat starch granules and the mechanism underlying its effect on the formation of dough gluten network. It summarizes the relationships between the granular structure, shell layer, bodies and molecular structure of wheat starch and the formation of dough gluten network. Furthermore, it examines the effects of physical, chemical, and biological technologies on the modification of natural starch granules and their application in dough processing. The objective is to establish a theoretical foundation for key technologies aimed at regulating the quality of flour products through starch granules and to provide technical guidance for their application.

With a view to investigating the effect of wheat sprouting degree on the cooking quality, textural characteristics and sensory evaluation of dried whole wheat noodles, whole wheat flours with different degrees of wheat sprouting (bulging, revealing, sprout length equal to 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 the grain length, and the grain length) were used to prepare dried whole wheat noodles. The results showed that the surface brightness of whole wheat noodles first increased and then decreased with the increase in wheat sprouting degree. The moisture absorption rate of dry matter reached the maximum when the sprout length was 1/2 the grain length, and the dry matter loss rate reached the minimum at the revealing stage. The viscosity and adhesion capacity of whole wheat noodles reached the minimum when the sprout length was 1/2 the grain length, and the hardness and shear work reached the maximum when the sprout length was 1/4 the grain length, and the breaking strength, tensile strength, elasticity and sensory score were the maximum when the sprout length was 1/2 the grain length. Overall, the eating quality of dried whole wheat noodles prepared from whole wheat flour at the stage of wheat revealing to sprout length equal to 1/2 the grain length was the best, and the overall eating quality of noodles prepared from sprouted whole wheat flour was improved compared with that of the control prepared from un-sprouted whole wheat flour.