The effect of sodium hypochlorite on the physicochemical and functional properties of normal and waxy corn starches was investigated in this study. It was found that both carboxyl and carbonyl contents of oxidized starches from normal corn were higher than those of waxy corn. The introduction of carboxyl and carbonyl groups resulted in lower amylose content and swelling power. Both amylose and amylopectin were oxidized and degraded during oxidation but amylose was more susceptible to oxidation. Studies conducted on paste clarity revealed that the percentage transmittance increased after oxidation. The morphology of the starches was not altered after oxidation. Thermal properties measured by differential scanning calorimeter, showed that oxidation reduced transition temperatures (onset temperature, T o ; peak temperature, T p ; and conclusion temperature, T c ), gelatinization and retrogradation enthalpies of both normal and waxy corn starches. The retrogradation tendency was reduced after oxidation both in normal and waxy corn starches. Oxidation produced waxy starch with significantly higher peak (P V ), trough (T V ), breakdown (B V ), final (F V ), and setback viscosity (S V ) as demonstrated by using a rapid visco analyzer. Oxidation reduced the pasting temperature of both normal and waxy corn starches. Also, the principal component analysis (PCA) study was conducted to find the overall variations among the oxidized starches studied. Together, the first two components represent 88.7 g/100 g of the total variability.

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Efficient delivery of tumor antigens and immunostimulatory adjuvants into lymph nodes is crucial for the maturation and activation of antigen-presenting cells (APCs), which subsequently induce adaptive antitumor immunity. A dissolving microneedle (MN) has been considered as an attractive method for transcutaneous immunization due to its superior ability to deliver vaccines through the stratum corneum in a minimally invasive manner. However, because dissolving MNs are mostly prepared using water-soluble sugars or polymers for their rapid dissolution in intradermal fluid after administration, they are often difficult to formulate with poorly water-soluble vaccine components. Here, we develop amphiphilic triblock copolymer-based dissolving MNs in situ that generate nanomicelles (NMCs) upon their dissolution after cutaneous application, which facilitate the efficient encapsulation of poorly water-soluble Toll-like receptor 7/8 agonist (R848) and the delivery of hydrophilic antigens. The sizes of NMCs range from 30 to 40 nm, which is suitable for the efficient delivery of R848 and antigens to lymph nodes and promotion of cellular uptake by APCs, minimizing systemic exposure of the R848. Application of MNs containing tumor model antigen (OVA) and R848 to the skin of EG7-OVA tumor-bearing mice induced a significant level of antigen-specific humoral and cellular immunity, resulting in significant antitumor activity.

Extruded pellets were prepared from normal corn starch using a corotating twin‐screw extruder (25:1 L/D ratio, 31 mm diameter screw), and then expanded by heating in a conventional microwave oven for 70 sec. The effects of gelatinization level and moisture content of the extruded pellets on the morphology and physical properties of the microwave‐expanded products such as puffing efficiency, expansion bulk volume, and bulk density were investigated. The expanded shape and air cell structure differed according to the degree of gelatinization of the pellets. Maximum puffing efficiency and expansion volume with the pellets containing 11% moisture were achieved at 52% gelatinization. For this level of gelatinization, starch was extruded at 90°C barrel temperature. In addition, the moisture content of the pellets critically affected the expansion behavior. The maximum puffing efficiency and expansion volume were achieved in a moisture range of 10~13%. For optimum product shape and uniform air cell distribution, the pellets should undergo sudden release of the superheated vapor during the microwave‐heating. The expansion by microwave‐heating was optimized at ≈50% gelatinization.

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