title: Starch flavor: apparent discrimination between amylopectin and amylose by rats.
abstract: Rats given a choice between dilute suspensions of corn amylopectin and corn amylose generally preferred amylopectin. The preference threshold for amylopectin was lower than the preference threshold for amylose (0.1% and 0.5%, respectively). Two sources of evidence indicate that the difference in preference for these two types of starch is due to an off-taste component in corn amylose rather than to an ability to discriminate between amylopectin and amylose per se: 1) rats given a choice of purified amylopectin and amylose from potato did not show a significant preference, and 2) aqueous extracts of amylose reduce preference for water and amylopectin, respectively. Extensive washing of corn amylose with ammonia-methanol, water and methanol did not completely remove the off-taste of corn amylose. Despite the difference in off-taste, rats trained to avoid amylopectin also avoided amylose. It is proposed that starch has two flavor components: a component due to starch itself that induces preference, and a component due to impurities that reduces preference.
authors.affiliation: Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA 19104-3308.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Ramirez
mesh_terms: D000687:Amylopectin / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000688:Amylose / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D004192:Discrimination, Psychological / Q000187:drug effects*; D005260:Female; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis; D005518:Food Preferences / Q000187:drug effects; D008094:Lithium / Q000494:pharmacology; D009821:Oils / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D011198:Solanum tuberosum / Q000737:chemistry; D013213:Starch / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013649:Taste / Q000187:drug effects*; D003313:Zea mays / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D009821:Oils; D013213:Starch; D000688:Amylose; D000687:Amylopectin; D008094:Lithium