Inhibition of Angiotensin converting enzyme I caused by autolysis of potato proteins by enzymatic activities confined to different parts of the potato tuber.

Autolysis of protein isolates from vascular bundle and inner tuber tissues of potato (Solanum tuberosum) enhanced the inhibition of the angiotensin converting enzyme I (ACE), a biochemical factor affecting blood pressure (hypertension). The physiological age of the tuber affected the strength of ACE inhibition, the rate of its increase during autolysis, and the tuber tissue where ACE inhibition was most pronounced. The highest inhibitory activities (50% reduction in ACE activity achieved following autolysis at a protein concentration of 0.36 mg mL (-1)) were measured in tubers after 5-6 months of storage prior to sprouting. The rate of ACE inhibition was positively correlated with protease activity in tuber tissues. Amendment of the autolysis reaction with protein substrates from which bioactive ACE-inhibitory peptides may be released, for example, a purified recombinant protein or a concentrate of total tuber proteins, also enhanced ACE inhibition. Many tuber proteins including aspartic protease inhibitors were degraded during autolysis. The data provide indications of differences in the enzymatic activities confined to different parts of the potato tuber at different physiological stages. Results suggest that native enzymes and substrate proteins of potato tubers can be utilized in search of dietary tools to manage elevated blood pressure.