Abstract
Starch-lycopene complexes may function as resistant starch, but their structural interactions and effects on digestibility and bioactivity remain poorly characterized. In this study, starch-lycopene complexes were prepared using waxy (WCS), normal (NCS), and high-amylose (G50CS) corn starches, and effects of amylose content on their structure, digestibility, and bioactivity were systematically investigated. Notably, lycopene (LYC) undergoes isomerization during complexation. Although complexes with more amylose released less total lycopene, the proportion of cis-lycopene was higher. Structural and simulation analyses revealed trans-lycopene (predominant) and cis-lycopene formed resistant complexes with amylose, while cis-lycopene formed slowly digestible complexes with amylopectin (DP 12–24). NCS-LYC (medium amylose) achieved an optimal balance in cis-lycopene release and proportion, resulting significantly enhanced antioxidant enzyme activities (SOD 1.32-fold, CAT 2.74-fold, and GSH-Px 1.35-fold) and reduced MDA levels by 60.6 % in H₂O₂-induced Caco-2 cells. These findings highlight amylose's role in modulating digestibility and lycopene isomerization, assisting the design of functional starch-based foods. © 2025 Elsevier Ltd.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 146501 |
| Number of pages | 15 |
| Journal | Food Chemistry |
| Volume | 495 |
| Issue number | Part 2 |
| Online published | 23 Sept 2025 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 15 Dec 2025 |
Funding
The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support from the NSFC/RGC Joint Research Scheme sponsored by the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China and National Natural Science Foundation of China (Project No. N_CUHK464/24), the Direct Grant for Research 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 from The Chinese University of Hong Kong (Project code: 4053622, 4053690), CUHK-Improvement on Competitiveness in Hiring New Faculties Funding Scheme (PI: Ref. 310), CUHK-School of Life Sciences Start-up funding, the CUHK Nissin Foods Scholarship.
Research Keywords
- In vitro digestion
- Molecular simulation
- Oxidative injured Caco-2 cells
- Starch-lycopene complex
RGC Funding Information
- RGC-funded
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