Tacca Tuber Starch—A Potential Substrate for Enzymatic Production of Glucose Syrup

Abstract Glucose syrup obtainable from enzymatic hydrolysis of cassava and corn is widely used as sweetener in food and pharmaceutical industries. This study evaluates the potential of starch from Tacca tuber in comparison with starch from cassava tuber to produce glucose syrup using amylase from fungal isolates. Spores of amylase‐producing cultures of Aspergillius niger and Rhizopus oligospora are grown on rice bran medium in solid state fermentation. Starch is obtained from Tacca ( Tacca leontopetaloides ) and cassava tubers using simple methods of extraction methods. Response Surface Method of the Central Composite Design version 6.0.8 is employed for optimization studies on the effect of pH, temperature, and time of hydrolysis on amylase activities of crude enzyme on the extracted starches. In comparison with cassava starch, physicochemical analysis of the glucose syrup obtained from cassava and Tacca tubers gives brix of 44 ° (cloudy appearance) and 40 ° (colourless in appearance) with a dextrose equivalent of 68.58 and 40.4 and specific gravity 1.200 and 1.169, respectively. An assessment of the microbiological quality of the glucose syrup produced shows no coliform or fungal growth. This study presents the potential of Tacca tuber as an economic and safe alternative to cassava starch for glucose syrup production.