Characterization and development mechanism of Apios americana tuber starch. (20th October 2016) - Yangcheng, Hanyu
Highlights: Apios tuber is a new food crop with superior nutritional values and health benefits. Starches of mother and child tubers showed different structures and properties. Starch in different regions of the mother tuber showed different characteristics. Starch biosynthesis was more vigorous in the peripheral region of the mother tuber. Abstract: Apios americana is a wild legume-bearing plant with edible tubers. Domestication of Apios is in progress because of the superior nutritional value and health benefits of the tuber. Objectives of this study were to: (1) characterize physicochemical properties of the Apios tuber starch; and (2) understand differences in starch structures and properties between the mother (seed) and child (progeny) tubers and the mechanism of starch development. Granules of the Apios tuber starch displayed ellipsoidal, rod, or kidney shape with diameter ranges of 1–30 μm. The mother tuber starches displayed greater percentage crystallinity, larger gelatinization enthalpy-changes, longer branch-chain lengths of amylopectin, and lower pasting viscosity than their counterpart child tuber starches. The mother tuber starch of Apios 2127 displayed distinct two peaks of gelatinization, which were attributed to starch granules located at different regions of the tuber having different structures and properties. The mother tuber displayed more active starch biosynthesis in the periphery than in the center of the tuber.