Starch digestion: A comprehensive update on the underlying modulation mechanisms and its in vitro assessment methodologies

作者：Daniela Freitas, Athina Lazaridou, Dorine Duijsens, Kali Kotsiou, Kendall R. Corbin, Marilisa Alongi, Natalia Pérez‐Moral, Şebnem Şimşek, Sedef Nehir El, Shannon Gwala, Sibel Karakaya, Steven Le Feunteun, Tara Grauwet, Mario M. Martínez, Cathrina H. Edwards · 发表于：Trends in Food Science & Technology · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1016/j.tifs.2025.104969 · 被引用次数：51 · 研究领域：Food composition and properties、Microbial Metabolites in Food Biotechnology、Proteins in Food Systems

Starch is the predominant carbohydrate in our diets and its impact on human health is intricately linked with its digestive process. However, despite major advancements in the field, important inconsistencies in how starch digestion is described and studied in vitro still persist. Our main objective was to provide up-to-date insights on starch digestion and fermentation in the human gastrointestinal tract, as well as related physiological responses and main drivers of variability (including inter-individual variations and structural and compositional differences between foods). A critical appraisal of digestion models and future work priorities is also presented. This work is the product of an international collaboration within the INFOGEST research network. Starch digestion is accomplished by the concerted action of luminal and brush-border hydrolases. Mechanical and biochemical transformations occurring throughout oral, gastric and intestinal phases can be determinant, contributing to different extents to the digestive process depending on food properties and individual characteristics. Numerous methodologies, with varying complexity and capacity to reproduce key digestive processes (e.g., gastric emptying), are currently available. Some in vitro digestibility outcome measures can be closely correlated with the outcomes of in vivo studies, demonstrating the promising potential of these approaches. However, the physiological relevance of in vitro starch digestion studies is ...