title: Variation of mineral composition in different parts of taro (Colocasia esculenta) corms.
abstract: Taro (Colocasia esculenta) is an important root crop in the humid tropics and a valuable source of essential mineral nutrients. In the presented study, we compared the mineral compositions of four main parts of taro corm: the upper, marginal, central and lower (basal) parts. The freeze-dried taro samples were analysed for eleven minerals (K, P, Mg, Ca, Zn, Fe, Mn, Cu, Cd, Pb and Cr). The upper part, which plays a critical role in vegetative propagation based on headsets, contained high levels of P, Mg, Zn, Fe, Mn, Cu and Cd. The central part, which is essential for human nutrition, was characterised by higher concentrations of K, P, Mg, Zn, Fe, Cu and Cd. Ca was concentrated in the lower and marginal parts. The effect of the genotype was significant for more than half of the analysed minerals (i.e., Mg, Ca, Zn, Fe, Mn).
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Maribor, Pivola 10, 2311 Hoce, Slovenia. Electronic address: andrej.mergedus@um.si.
authors.forename: Andrej
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mergedus
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Maribor, Pivola 10, 2311 Hoce, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Janja
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kristl
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Maribor, Pivola 10, 2311 Hoce, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Anton
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ivancic
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Maribor, Pivola 10, 2311 Hoce, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Andreja
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sober
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Maribor, Pivola 10, 2311 Hoce, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Vilma
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Sustar
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Maribor, Pivola 10, 2311 Hoce, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Tomaz
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Krizan
authors.affiliation: CIRAD, P.O. Box 946, Port-Vila, Vanuatu.
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Lebot
mesh_terms: D031060:Colocasia / Q000737:chemistry*; D008903:Minerals / Q000032:analysis*; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D008903:Minerals
keywords: Chemical composition; Colocasia esculenta; Corms; Minerals; Taro