Protocols for Preparing Novel Amylose–Lipid–Polyphenol Complexes with Antioxidant Activities

Resistant starches with additional functionalities, such as starch-polyphenol complexes, are generating great interest due to the increasing incidence of diet-related diseases. However, preparing these complexes remains a major challenge due to the incompatible structures of many natural phenolic compounds. Herein, three protocols were compared for preparing novel amylose (AM) complexes with polyphenol quercetin (Q) in the presence of lauric acid (LA). The addition of quercetin before lauric acid was the most favorable for the formation of the AM-LA-Q complexes. Molecular dynamics and experimental analyses showed that quercetin in AM-LA-Q complexes was attached to or encased by the highly folded AM chains rather than entrapped inside AM helices. Hydrogen bonds, electrostatic interactions, and van der Waals forces between AM and quercetin were involved in the formation of AM-LA-Q complexes, which had low enzyme digestibility and high antioxidant activity. This study opens the way for developing novel starch-phenolic complexes with antioxidant activities.