Further physicochemical characterization of anchomanes difformis starch

Anchomanes difformis (Blume) Engl. [family ARACEAE] is an herbaceous plant with prickly stem having huge divided leaf and spathe that arise from a horizontal tuber occurring in the forest of West Africa and presently untilized. The tuber of the plant was examined for its starch composition and physicochemical properties. The starch was isolated using 1 % w/v sodium metabisulphite and it gave a yield of about 21 % which is slightly off white in colour. The starch percentage solubility at 85 O C was 17.32 with a swelling power of 9.66 and gelatinization temperature of 72 O C. It has a browning temperature of 257.0 – 268.2 O C, charring temperature of 281.4 – 291.6 O C, water absorption capacity of 71 %, pH of 5.6, foam and emulsion capacities of 3.6 % and 9.17 % respectively. Phytochemical screening of the starch revealed the presence of carbohydrates, terpenoids, saponins and cardiac glycosides while the proximate analysis (in %) was found to be: fat – 1.0, ash – 0.75, crude fibre – 1.6, protein – 0.66, moisture – 6.0, and carbohydrates – 88.9.The paste clarity was determined at 580 nm as a function of the starch concentration. The photomicrograph indicates that the starch granule is generally small sized, not distinct but clustered with size ranging between 1 – 1.5 μm which is a reflection of the parent source. Generally, the values obtained from the physicochemical characterization of anchomanes difformis starch show that it has high potential for industrial applications especially in the food, textile and pharmaceutical industries.