Structural changes during development in the amylose and amylopectin fractions (separated by precipitation with concanavalin A) of starches from maize genotypes

Discrete forms of amylose are synthesized by isoforms of GBSSI in pea

Amyloses with distinct molecular masses are found in the starch of pea embryos compared with the starch of pea leaves. In pea embryos, a granule-bound starch synthase protein (GBSSIa) is required for the synthesis of a significant portion of the amylose. However, this protein seems to be insignificant in the synthesis of amylose in pea leaves. cDNA clones encoding a second isoform of GBSSI, GBSSIb, have been isolated from pea leaves. Comparison of GBSSIa and GBSSIb activities shows them to have distinct properties. These differences have been confirmed by the expression of GBSSIa and GBSSIb in the amylose-free mutant of potato. GBSSIa and GBSSIb make distinct forms of amylose that differ in their molecular mass. These differences in product specificity, coupled with differences in the tissues in which GBSSIa and GBSSIb are most active, explain the distinct forms of amylose found in different tissues of pea. The shorter form of amylose formed by GBSSIa confers less susceptibility to the retrogradation of starch pastes than the amylose formed by GBSSIb. The product specificity of GBSSIa could provide beneficial attributes to starches for food and nonfood uses.

The chemical structure of amylose and amylopectin fractions of starch from tobacco leaves during development and diurnally-nocturnally

Starches, isolated from rapidly expanding tobacco leaves four times during the day and night and once from fully expanded leaves, were fractionated with concanavalin A. From an examination of the amounts and properties of amylose, the diurnal decrease in iodine absorption of the starches on illumination appeared to be due to an increase in its branched character, and possibly the presence of unbranched polymer of low dp, combined with a decrease in the proportion of amylose fraction. The increase in apparent amylose content with age was due to an increase in the proportion of amylose. The amylose fractions at different times had only small differences in average mol size in solution and relative mol wt (M(r) near 4 x 10(5)) which were lower than those of storage organs. The average mol size in solution and relative mol wt of the amylopectins decreased during illumination, increased in darkness, and were lower (M(r) 2-2.7 x 10(6)) at all times than those from storage organs. Debranching followed by size-exclusion chromatography [on Fractogel TSK 50(S)] gave similar proportions of long, medium, and short chains for all amylopectin samples, and these proportions differed from those for debranched amylopectin from n-maize seed starch. On debranching and chromatography of the amylopectin beta-limit dextrins (which gives an estimate of the proportions of core chains) differences persisted. Structural characteristics of amylopectin from tobacco leaf starch were similar to those of normal genotypes from storage organs. The proportion of glucosyl units in core chains, the external-to-core chain ratio, and indices of compactness were calculated for a number of (1-->4)(1-->6) alpha-glucans. A plot of the index of compactness for glycogens and amylopectins showed that the decrease in compactness and the increase in total average chain length that occurs from glycogen to normal and then to amylose extender amylopectins involves a proportionate increase in average internal, external, and core chain lengths and not a selective increase in one type of chain.

Structures of the amylopectins of waxy, normal, amylose-extender, and wx:ae genotypes and of the phytoglycogen of maize

Average chain lengths and beta-amylolysis limits have been determined for the waxy and ae/wx genotypes of mature maize starch, and for the amylopectin fractions of normal and amylose-extender starches (prepared by precipitation with concanavalin A), rabbit-liver glycogen, phytoglycogen, and waxy rice starch. All amylopectin samples had similar A:B chain ratios of > 1 and the two glycogens had ratios of < 1. This finding led to average frequencies of substitution of B chains over the whole molecule of > 2 for the amylopectins and < 2 for the glycogens. An equation for the number of tiers for a molecule with various frequencies of substitution of B chains and chain lengths has been used to determine the effect of variation in average frequency of branching and average chain length on structure.