Identifying the primary meteorological factors affecting the growth and development of Tartary buckwheat and a comprehensive landrace evaluation using a multi-environment phenotypic investigation.

BACKGROUND: Tartary buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum) is a traditional edible and medicinal crop and has been praised as one of the green foods for humans in the 21st century. However, its production and promotion are restricted by the low yields of current varieties. The interaction of genotype and environment could lead to inconsistent phenotypic performance of genotypes across different environments. Climate change has intensified these effects and poses a substantial threat to crop production. RESULTS: In the present study, the effects of meteorological factors on the phenotypic traits of 200 Tartary buckwheat landraces across four macro-environments were investigated. Overall, the phenotypic performance of these Tartary buckwheat landraces was markedly varied across the different environments. Also, the average daily temperature and precipitation had relatively higher impacts on phenotypic performance. The results also revealed the negative impacts of relative humidity on the yield-related traits. Twenty-five Tartary buckwheat landraces were ultimately identified as having good overall phenotypic performance and high yield stability. CONCLUSION: Understanding the impacts of meteorological factors on the phenotypic performance of crops can guide appropriate measures and facilitate germplasm selection for yield enhancement in the context of climate change. The landraces selected comprehensively in this study could be used as parents or intermediate materials for breeding high-quality Tartary buckwheat varieties in the future. The methods used could also be extended to other crops for breeding and germplasm innovation. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

Isolation and characterization of starch from light yellow, orange, and purple sweet potatoes.

Sweet potato is attracting increased research attention because of its high nutritional value (e.g., carotene, anthocyanin, and minerals) and the wide application of its starch in foods and nonfoods. Herein, eight Chinese sweet potato varieties were investigated in terms of the physicochemical properties of starches. The lightness values of the eight sweet potato starches were higher than 90, which was satisfactory for starch purity. The average molecular weight (MW) and amylopectin average chain length (ACL) of sweet potato starches ranged from 6.93 × 107 g/mol to 16.57 × 107 g/mol and from 21.85% to 23.00%, respectively. Su16 starch with low amylose content and a large amount of short chains exhibited low crystallinity and thermal properties. These results suggested that the molecular structure of amylose and amylopectin was the main influencing factor in determining sweet potato starch physicochemical properties. The swelling power and water solubility of the starches ranged within 20.14-30.51 g/g and 5.28%-11.71% at 95 °C, respectively. Regarding pasting properties, all the starch samples presented high peak viscosity (>5500 cP) and peak temperature (>78 °C), indicating that sweet potato starch can be used as a thickener. All eight sweet potatoes varieties showed great application potential in the food industry.

Functional and physicochemical properties of flours and starches from different tuber crops.

Flours and isolated starches from different potato and sweet potato varieties were evaluated for their physical, functional, pasting, and thermal properties. The flours had higher protein and amylose contents than starches. The L values of the starches ranged from 91.92 (S-2) to 96.42 (S-1); thus, the whiteness of the starch samples was satisfactory. X-ray diffraction mode showed that potato starch could be a special material for crystalline nanomaterials with potential industrial applications. The starches had higher viscosity than flours. Therefore, starches can be used as thickeners in different food products. The flours exhibited high gelatinization temperatures but low enthalpy, which can be attributed to the effects of non-starch components in the flours, such as proteins and lipids. Potato flours and starches exhibited higher amylose contents and pasting characteristics and wider applications in the food industry than sweet potato flours and starches. The purple-fleshed varieties had high antioxidant activity. Therefore, the colorful flours of potatoes and sweet potatoes can be combined with other cereals for the development of functional flours with nutritional applications.

Effects of phosphate fertiliser on the physicochemical properties of Tartary buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum (L.) Gaertn.) starch.

Phosphate fertilisation affects the growth, development and quality of Tartary buckwheat. In this study, the effect of different phosphorus levels, including 0, 15, 75, and 135 kg/ha (non-, low-, medium-, and high-phosphorus levels, respectively), on the characteristics of starch from Tartary buckwheat were investigated in 2015 and 2017. With increased phosphorus level, the median diameter of starch granules and the apparent amylose content initially decreased and then increased. All starch samples showed the features of A-type X-ray diffraction patterns. Starches under medium-phosphorus treatment showed higher relative crystallinity than those under non-phosphorus treatment, as well as the highest solubility, gelatinisation enthalpy and transmittance among all starches. Starches under low-phosphorus treatment exhibited higher pasting properties than those under non-phosphorus treatment. This research revealed that phosphorus treatments and year significantly affected the physicochemical properties of Tartary buckwheat starch, and can provide information for the applications of starch in the food and non-food industries.

Analysis of Flavonoid Metabolites in Buckwheat Leaves Using UPLC-ESI-MS/MS.

Flavonoids from plants are particularly important in our diet. Buckwheat is a special crop that is rich in flavonoids. In this study, four important buckwheat varieties, including one tartary buckwheat and three common buckwheat varieties, were selected as experimental materials. The total flavonoid content of leaves from red-flowered common buckwheat was the highest, followed by tartary buckwheat leaves. A total of 182 flavonoid metabolites (including 53 flavone, 37 flavonol, 32 flavone C-glycosides, 24 flavanone, 18 anthocyanins, 7 isoflavone, 6 flavonolignan, and 5 proanthocyanidins) were identified based on Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography-Electrospray Ionization-Tandem Mass Spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-MS/MS) system. Through clustering analysis, principal component analysis (PCA), and orthogonal signal correction and partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA), different samples were clearly separated. Considerable differences were observed in the flavonoid metabolites between tartary buckwheat leaves and common buckwheat leaves, and both displayed unique metabolites with important biological functions. This study provides new insights into the differences of flavonoid metabolites between tartary buckwheat and common buckwheat leaves and provides theoretical basis for the sufficient utilization of buckwheat.