Abstract The study aimed to compare cultivated and wild D. alata resources about the physiochemical properties and in vitro digestibility in South China. The isolated and characterised starches were four cultivated D. alata starches (CZP, CXW, CMM and CXH) and two wild samples D. alata and D. japonica (WXH and WMM). The granule of the starches varied significantly from elliptical/oval/elongated to steamed bun in shape. All these six starches displayed B-type pattern with crystallinity in the range of 15.49~42.27%. In vitro digestion kinetics indicated that CXH and CMM have a lower digestibility rate constant and lower rapidly digestible starch (RDS) content (9.59% and 12.27%). No obvious differences were observed in the hydrolysis parameters between cultivated and wild yam starches. Notably, CMM and CXH starches have high levels of RS+SDS and a low digestion rate (k= 0.0151 min−1 and 0.0082 min−1). These attributes make them promising candidates for the development of functional foods with controlled digestibility—particularly low-glycaemic index products tailored for metabolic health management. Furthermore, the findings provide valuable insights for crop improvement programmes, supporting the breeding of D. alata cultivars with enhanced nutritional profiles suitable for both food and medicinal applications.
Liang et al. (Mon,) studied this question.