Isolation and physicochemical property of individual parenchyma cells from mealy sweet potato.

This study prepared the dehydrated sweet potato parenchyma cell (SPPC) by isolating intact, individual parenchyma cells (PC) from sweet potato (SP) flesh using pectinase, and compared its chemical compositions, solubility and swelling power, gelatinization, and pasting viscosity to sweet potato starch (SPST) and flour (SPFL). The highest yield of SPPC was achieved when frozen SP whole-tissues were treated with pectin lyase. The majority constituting SPPC was intact, individual PCs fully filled with SPST granules. SPPC possessed lower crude protein and ash contents than SPFL. SPPC revealed lower solubility and swelling power, higher gelatinization temperatures, and lower pasting viscosity than SPST, while it showed lower solubility, higher swelling power, lower gelatinization temperatures, and higher pasting viscosity than SPFL. Overall, SPPC characteristics may result from intact PC walls surrounding clusters of SPPC granules, and SPPC could be considered an alternative to SPFL and SPST for expanding industrial applications of SP. © The Korean Society of Food Science and Technology 2019.