GELATION OF AMYLOPECTIN WITHOUT LONG-RANGE ORDER

Weak amylopectin gels have been formed directly following dissolution of waxy maize granules. Rheological characterisation of these gels has been carried out as a function of stress and frequency. The gels are visually clear and homogeneous, and environmental scanning electron microscopy shows no trace of the original granules remaining. It is postulated that the origin of the gel network lies in pairwise aggregation of outer chains of the amylopectin molecules, presumably via double helix formation. However, these pairs of chain segments do not aggregate to develop crystallinity.