Central Tuber Crops Research Institute

About: Central Tuber Crops Research Institute is a facility organization based out in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Starch & Fermentation. The organization has 475 authors who have published 587 publications receiving 10285 citations.

Effect of benzyl amino purine on the pathogen growth and disease development of taro leaf blight caused by phytophthora colocasiae

Abstract: SUMMARY Cytokinins are implicated in a wide variety of developmental and physiological processes in plants including host-pathogen interactions. The effect of cytokinin benzyl amino purine (BAP) on Phytophthora colocasiae mycelium growth was investigated in vitro and in planta. BAP inhibited the growth of P. colocasiae under in vitro conditions and a corresponding decrease in endo b-1,3 glucanase (EBG) activity was observed in a dose-dependent manner. The BAP mediated inhibitory effect of P. colocasiae mycelium growth was overcome by supplying the media with an external source of EBG. Results also showed that BAP has inhibitory effect on disease development in taro leading to a reduction in disease severity which correlated with increasing BAP concentrations. It is concluded that the use of BAP could be an important strategy in the control of taro leaf blight.

Meiosis and sexual fertility of autotetraploid clones of greater yam Dioscorea alata L.

Abstract: Meiosis in the tetraploid (2n = 80) males of Dioscorea alata L. was investigated for the first time. During metaphase I, the chromosomes were associated mostly in 6–8 quadrivalents and the remaining ones as bivalents with no trivalents or univalents. Anaphase I and subsequent stages of meiosis were normal. The observation of quadrivalents in the tetraploids provides cytological evidence for autotetraploidy. The autotetraploid males and females were highly fertile and they produced viable seeds on artificial pollination. Pollination between diploids (2n = 40) and tetraploids (2n = 80) were also successful via embryo rescue, producing triploid (2n = 60) progenies. The discovery of fertile autotetraploids could initiate polyploidy breeding in D. alata by conventional hybridization for the first time. The reduced number of quadrivalents and the high fertility of the autotetraploids are thought to be the result of partial diploidization of meiosis. The findings also refute the assumption of the allopolyploid origin of D. alata from two putative progenitors.

Cytogenetics of the F1 hybrid between cassava and ceara rubber, and its backcross

Abstract: Cytogenetical studies of the F1 hybrid between the commercially cultivated tuber crop, cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz.) and the closely related wild speciesManihot glaziovii Muell. (Ceara rubber) used as donor specles for “Cassava mosaic” discase and drought-resistant genes and back crosses (to cassava parent) were made. The contrasting parental characters showed partial to total dominance in the F1 hybrid, while the back cross plants were similar to cassava in most of their characters. Eleven of the twelve backeross plants exhibited resistance to “Cassava mosaic” under field conditions. Karyological similarities and differences as resolved on the basis of a comparative study of the karyotypes of the cassava parent and coara rubber were corroborated by the study of chromosomal pairing in the F1 at pachytene. Major chromosomal differentiation in the two species involved three chromosomes of their haploid complement which were represented by three heteromorphic bivalent associations in F1 each consisting of a probably basic chromosomal type and a derived type. Pachytene analyses of three back cross plants provided direct proof for random transmission of marker chromosomes of both the parents through male gametes of the F1 hybrid. An increase in the chiasma frequency in the back cross plants over the F1 hybrid at metaphase I stage was also observed. Pollen fertility of the backeross plants showed considerable variation.

Production of High Fructose Syrup from Cassava and Sweet Potato Flours and their Blends with Cereal Flours

Abstract: Despite being a rich source of starch, root crops such as cassava and sweet potato have not been widely exploited for the production of high fructose syrup (HFS), which is a highly valued sweetener for the food and beverage industries. The major factors contributing to the cost of production of HFS are the cost and labor-intensive steps in the production of starch, different processing temperatures and pH for the enzyme reactions, poor extractability of starch, etc. With the objective of overcoming the cost associated with the preparation of starch, the feasibility of using native cassava/sweet potato flours and their blends with rice flour and wheat flour, as the raw material for HFS production was investigated. The saccharified slurry from cassava--rice flour blends contained 70-72 g reducing sugars/100 g, which was higher than that released from native cassava flour (~69%). Blends of sweet potato with rice or wheat yielded saccharified mash with lower content of reducing sugars (60-66%). Although the percentage conversion to fructose after isomerization was similar for cassava/sweet potato or their blends with cereal flours (42-43%), fructose yield was higher in native cassava flour and cassava-rice blends (28-29 g/100 g) than the other flour blends.