Structure, physicochemical and toxicity properties of underused malaysian native Tuber’s starch ( Dioscorea Pentaphylla)

摘要

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to characterize the structure, physicochemical and toxicity properties ofDioscorea Pentaphyllatuber’s starch.MethodsStarch was extracted from Dioscorea Pentaphylla tuber’s and analyzed to determine their properties such as pH, water binding capacity, solubility, swelling power, chemical composition, thermal properties, degree of crystallinity, morphology and toxicity.ResultsResults showed that more than half ofDioscorea pentaphyllastarch consist of amylose (64.10?±?1.15%). It has gelatinization temperature started at 76.90?±?0.08?°C. This C-Type starch has a degree of crystallinity around 32.90?±?2.59%. The SEM image showed thatDioscorea pentaphyllahas oval-shaped particles with sizes ranging from 42 to 55?μm. The toxicity test demonstrated that the starch was safe and can be classified as non-toxic.ConclusionThe physicochemical and toxicology properties ofDioscorea Pentaphyllastarch recorded in this study indicate that this starch is applicable as biopolymer source for food and non-food purposes.