![Sample our Food Science & Technology journals, sign in here to start your access, latest two full volumes FREE to you for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5936/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Food-Science-Technology.jpg"})
Abstract
The microstructure of food matrixes, and specifically that of wheat-flour dough, determines mechanical behavior. Consequently, the analysis of such microstructure is both necessary and useful for understanding the physico-chemical and mechanical alterations during the production of cereal-based products such as breads. Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) is an established tool for the investigation of these matrix properties due to its methodical advantages such as easy preparation and handling, and the high depth resolution due to the optical sectioning of probes. This review focuses on the microstructure of wheat-flour dough from a mechanical and visual point of view. It provides an overview of the dependencies between the visibly detectable microstructural elements achieved by CLSM and the physical determined rheological properties. Current findings in this field, especially on numerical microstructure features, are described and discussed, and possibilities for enhancing the analytical methodology are presented.
ABBREVIATIONS
| A | = | area |
| AF | = | area fraction of all objects |
| AR | = | aspect ratio |
| ØA | = | average size of all objects |
| C | = | circularity |
| CLSM | = | confocal laser scanning microscopy |
| DATEM | = | diacetyl tartaric acid esters of monoglyceriedes |
| DDT | = | optimal dough development time |
| DF | = | (Feret's) diameter |
| FD | = | fractal dimension |
| FITC | = | fluorescein isothiocyanate |
| G′ | = | storage modulus |
| G″ | = | loss modulus |
| G* | = | complex shear modulus |
| LM | = | light microscopy |
| NA | = | numerical aperture |
| Mr | = | relative molecular mass |
| P | = | perimeter |
| ΣP | = | count |
| S | = | solidity |
| SEM | = | scanning electron microscopy |
| SME | = | specific mechanical energy |