Rosa Maria Esparza Merino

Prof. Rosa Maria Esparza Merino


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

8Years (2019-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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6 February 2019 in Food Science and Biotechnology
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
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RMRosa Maria Esparza Merino
Rosa Maria Esparza Merino
María Macías-RodríguezMaría Macías-Rodríguez
María Macías-Rodríguez
ECE. Cabrera-Díaz
E. Cabrera-Díaz
AVA. J. Valencia-Botín
A. J. Valencia-Botín
YEY Estrada-Girón
Y Estrada-Girón

7 August 2025 in Polysaccharides
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
RMRosa Maria Esparza Merino
Rosa Maria Esparza Merino
YEY Estrada-Girón
Y Estrada-Girón
APAna María Puebla Pérez
Ana María Puebla Pérez
VFVíctor Vladimir Amílcar Fernández-Escamilla
Víctor Vladimir Amílcar Fernández-Escamilla
ACAngelina Martín del Campo-Campos
Angelina Martín del Campo-Campos
ICIsrael Ceja
Israel Ceja
Starch particles (SPs) were extracted from underutilized wild yam (Dioscorea remotiflora) tubers using two methods: (1) acid hydrolysis (AH) alone and (2) acid hydrolysis assisted by ultrasound (AH-US). The SPs were chemically modified through esterification (using acetic anhydride [AA] and lauroyl chloride [LC]) and crosslinking (with citric acid [CA] and sodium hexametaphosphate [SHMP]). They were subsequently characterized by their yield, amylose content, and structural and physical properties. The yield of particles was 17.5–19.7%, and the residual amylose content was 2.8–3.2%. Particle sizes ranged from 0.46 to 0.55 µm, which exhibited mono-modal and bi-modal distributions for AH and AH-US treatments, respectively. Following chemical modification, yield notably increased, especially with substitution by LC (33.6–36.5%) and CA (32.6–38.7%). Modified SPs exhibited bi-modal particle distributions with micro- and nanoparticles and variable peak intensities depending on the chemical compound used. Unmodified SPs displayed irregular morphologies, showing disruptions (AH) or aggregation (AH-US). Chemical substitutions altered morphologies, leading to amorphous surfaces (CA: AH), clustering (LC), or fragmentation into smaller particles (SHMP) under AH-US treatment. FT-IR analysis indicated a decrease in hydroxyl groups’ peak area (A(-OH)), confirming the substitution of these groups in the starch structure. Crosslinking with CA resulted in the highest degree of substitution (AH: 0.43; AH-US: 0.44) and melting enthalpy (ΔHf: 343.0 J/g for AH-US), revealing stronger interactions between SPs from both methods. These findings demonstrate that the extraction treatment of D. remotiflora SPs and the type of chemical modifier significantly influence the properties of SPs, underscoring their potential applications as natural biocarriers.