Screening for High-Amylose Corn Genotypes using
Differential Scanning Calorimetry of Native Starch

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Nate Polaske.
Dr. Mark Campbell, Faculty Mentor.

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Many methods for screening starch amylose/amylopectin ratios are currently in practice today. While nearly all methods successfully estimate the ratios over a wide sample range, few methods are able to rapidly differentiate between a narrow sample range with the desired precision. Therefore, our objective has been to develop a method for screening amylose content in native starch samples ranging between 50 and 80% amylose using a differential scanning calorimeter technique (DSC) based on quantifying the size of the endotherm of the annealing of amylose and L-α-lysophosphotidylcholine. Another important aspect of the study is to show that the method is suitable for native starches since previous studies have concentrated primarily on solubilized starches.