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AMYLOSE/
AMYLOPECTIN

ASSAY PROCEDURE
K-AMYL 06/18

FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF THE

AMYLOSE AND AMYLOPECTIN
CONTENTS OF STARCH

(100 Assays per Kit)

© Megazyme 2018
INTRODUCTION:
Many of the properties of cereal starches that determine their
suitability for particular end-uses are dependent upon their amylose/
amylopectin ratios. These properties include gelatinisation and
gelation characteristics, solubility, the formation of resistant starch,
and, for rice, the cooking and textural characteristics of whole
grains.1-5 Thus, the measurement of the amylose content of starches
is an important quality parameter for starch processing.
Amylose is most commonly determined in cereal starches by the
potentiometric, amperometric or colourimetric measurement of the
iodine binding capacity of the amylose with the resultant formation
of amylose-iodine inclusion complexes.6-10 However, these methods
are subject to uncertainties. Amylopectin-iodine complexes also
form, and these reduce the concentration of free iodine measured
by the non-colourimetric methods and may absorb at similar
wavelengths to amylose-iodine complexes in colourimetric methods.
These complexes lead to an over-estimation of the amylose, requiring
corrections to be applied. Many of the other problems experienced
in the use of these methods are detailed by Gibson et al.11
The specific formation of amylopectin complexes with the
lectin concanavalin A (Con A) offers an alternative approach to
amylose measurement in starches that is not subject to these
uncertainties.12-13 Under defined conditions of pH, temperature and
ionic strength, Con A specifically complexes branched polysaccharides
based on α-D-glucopyranosyl or α-D-mannopyranosyl units at
multiple non-reducing end-groups with the formation of a precipitate.
Thus, Con A effectively complexes the amylopectin component of
starch but not the primarily linear amylose component.
The procedure described in this booklet13 is a modification of a
Con A method developed by Yun and Matheson (1990).13 It uses
an ethanol pre-treatment step to remove lipids prior to analysis
[modified from Morrison and Laignelet (1983)7 ].

PRINCIPLE:
Starch samples are completely dispersed by heating in dimethyl
sulphoxide (DMSO). Lipids are removed by precipitating the starch
in ethanol and recovering the precipitated starch. After dissolution
of the precipitated sample in an acetate/salt solution, amylopectin
is specifically precipitated by the addition of Con A and removed
by centrifugation. The amylose, in an aliquot of the supernatant, is
enzymically hydrolysed to D-glucose, which is analysed using glucose
oxidase/peroxidase reagent. The total starch, in a separate aliquot of
the acetate/salt solution, is similarly hydrolysed to D-glucose and

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measured colourimetrically by glucose oxidase/peroxidase. The
concentration of amylose in the starch sample is estimated as the
ratio of GOPOD absorbance at 510 nm of the supernatant of the
Con A precipitated sample to that of the total starch sample.
This procedure is applicable to all pure starch samples and to cereal
flours.

ACCURACY:
Repeated analyses of a set of samples yielded repeatability (within
laboratory) with relative standard deviations of < 5% for pure
starches and ~ 10% for cereal flours.

KITS:
Kits suitable for performing 100 assays are available from Megazyme.
The kits contain the full assay method plus:

Bottle 1: Freeze dried Con A.

Stable for > 5 years below -10°C.

Bottle 2: Amyloglucosidase [200 U on p-nitrophenyl

β-maltoside (i.e. 3,300 U on starch at pH 4.5 at
40°C)] plus fungal α-amylase (500 U on Ceralpha
Reagent at pH 5.0 and 40°C), 2 mL.
Stable for > 5 years at 4°C.

Bottle 3: GOPOD Reagent Buffer. Buffer (50 mL,

pH 7.4), p-hydroxybenzoic acid and sodium azide
(0.095% w/v).
Stable for > 4 years at 4°C.

Bottle 4: GOPOD Reagent Enzymes. Glucose oxidase

plus peroxidase and 4-aminoantipyrine. Freeze-
dried powder.
Stable for > 5 years below -10°C.

Bottle 5: D-Glucose standard solution (5 mL, 1.0 mg/mL) in

0.2% (w/v) benzoic acid.
Stable for > 5 years at room temperature.

Bottle 6: Starch reference sample (with specified content

of amylose).
Stable for > 5 years at room temperature.

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PREPARATION OF REAGENT SOLUTIONS/SUSPENSIONS:
1. Dissolve the contents of bottle 1 in 50 mL of Con A solvent
(Buffer 3, page 4). Divide into aliquots of appropriate size
and store in polypropylene tubes below -10°C between use
and keep cool during use if possible.
Stable for > 2 years below -10°C.
2. Dissolve the contents of bottle 2 in 20 mL of sodium acetate
buffer (100 mM, pH 4.5). Divide into appropriately sized
aliquots and store in polypropylene tubes below -10°C
between use and keep cool during use if possible.
Stable for > 2 years below -10°C.
3. Dilute the contents of bottle 3 (GOPOD Reagent Buffer) to
1 L with distilled water (this is solution 3). Use immediately.

NOTE:
1. On storage, salt crystals may form in the concentrated buffer.
These must be completely dissolved when this buffer is diluted
to 1 L with distilled water.
2. This buffer contains 0.095% (w/v) sodium azide.
This is a poisonous chemical and should be treated accordingly.
4. Dissolve the contents of bottle 4 with 20 mL of solution 3
and quantitatively transfer this to the bottle containing the
remainder of solution 3. Cover this bottle with aluminium
foil to protect the enclosed reagent from light. This is
Glucose Determination Reagent (GOPOD Reagent).
Stable for ~ 3 months when stored at 2-5°C or > 12 months
below -10°C.
5 & 6. Use the contents of bottles 5 and 6 as supplied.
Stable for > 5 years at room temperature.

SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS:
1. Dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) is listed in the Merck Index (No.
3255) as a skin irritant and thus it should be used with caution.
It is absorbed through the skin and can cause irritation to both
skin and eyes. Wear PPE and avoid splashing the solvent. Use
in a fume cupboard where possible.
2. Concanavalin A is harmful by inhalation, skin contact and
ingestion. Effects may be irreversible and may involve
teratogenesis. Wear appropriate PPE when handling crystalline
Con A and gloves when handling solutions containing Con A.
3. Sodium azide is a toxic chemical and should be treated
accordingly. It is added to buffers solely as a preservative. It
can be deleted from buffer recipes but buffers should then be
stored at 4°C.
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BUFFERS AND SOLVENTS (NOT SUPPLIED):
1. Sodium Acetate Buffer (100 mM, pH 4.5)
Add 5.9 mL of glacial acetic acid (1.05 g/mL) to 900 mL of distilled
water. Adjust the pH to pH 4.5 by the addition of 1 M (4 g/100
mL) sodium hydroxide solution (approx. 30 mL is required). Add
0.2 g of sodium azide and adjust the volume to 1 L.
Stable for > 2 years at room temperature.

2. Concentrated Con A Solvent (600 mM, pH 6.4 sodium

acetate buffer)
Dissolve 49.2 g of anhydrous sodium acetate (Sigma cat. no.
71183), 175.5 g of sodium chloride (Sigma cat. no. S7653),
0.5 g of CaCl2.2H2O (Sigma cat. no. C5080), 0.7 g of
MgCl2.6H2O (Sigma cat. no. M2670) and 0.7 g of MnCl2.4H2O
(Sigma cat. no. M3634) in 900 mL of distilled water. Adjust the
pH to 6.4 by dropwise addition of glacial acetic acid and then
adjust the volume to 1 L with distilled water.
Stable for 2 weeks at 4°C.

NOTE: When preparing this buffer mixture, it is essential that

the pH is adjusted very carefully. If the pH drops significantly
below 6.4 a precipitate forms and this will not redissolve on pH
adjustment. Consequently, this buffer must be discarded and a
fresh batch prepared.

3. Con A Solvent (working concentration)

Dilute 30 mL of Concentrated Con A Solvent to 100 mL with
distilled water. Use on the day of preparation.

4. Dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO)

Analytical reagent grade (BDH Analar cat. no. 10323).
Stable for 5 years at room temperature.

EQUIPMENT (RECOMMENDED):
1. Glassware:
- volumetric flask (25 mL);
- glass test tubes (16 x 120 mm, 15 mL);
- screw capped sample tubes (Kimax®) (10 mL).
2. Micro-pipettors, to dispense 50-1000 µL (e.g. Gilson Pipetman).
3. Positive displacement pipettor, e.g. Eppendorf Multipette®.
4. Eppendorf® microfuge tubes (2.0 mL capacity).
5. Boiling water bath.

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6. Bench centrifuge (capable of 2,000 g).
7. Vortex mixer (e.g. IKA® Yellowline Test Tube Shaker TTS2).
8. Spectrophotometer (set at 510 nm).
9. Stop clock.
10. Analytical balance.
11. Microfuge (capable of 14,000 g).
12. Thermostated water bath set at 40°C.

PRECAUTIONS:
Starch samples must be pre-treated with ethanol as described to
remove lipids. If samples are not treated with ethanol, the amylose
contents in some samples may be under-estimated by as much as
50%.

ASSAY PROCEDURE:
A. Starch Pre-treatment
1. Accurately weigh starch or flour sample (20-25 mg to the
nearest 0.1 mg) into a 10 mL screw capped Kimax® sample
tube. Record the sample weight to the nearest 0.1 mg.

NOTE: Include a reference sample with each batch. Duplicate

every fifth test sample.

2. Add 1 mL of DMSO to the tube while gently stirring it at low

speed on a vortex mixer. Cap the tube and heat the tube
contents in a boiling water bath until the sample is completely
dispersed (approx. 1 min). Ensure that no gelatinous lumps of
starch are remaining.
3. Vigorously mix the contents of the sealed tube at high speed on
a vortex mixer, place the tube in a boiling water bath and heat
it for 15 min, with intermittent high-speed stirring on a vortex
mixer.
4. Store the tube at room temperature for approx. 5 min and add
2 mL of 95% (v/v) ethanol with continuous stirring on a vortex
mixer. Add a further 4 mL of ethanol, cap the tube and invert
to mix. A starch precipitate will form. Allow the tube to stand
for 15 min (or overnight if desired).
5. Centrifuge the tubes at 2,000 g for 5 min, discard the
supernatant and drain the tubes on tissue paper for 10 min.
Ensure that all of the ethanol has drained. Use the pellet in the
subsequent amylose and starch determinations.
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6. Add 2 mL of DMSO (with gentle vortex mixing) to the starch
pellet. Place the tube in a boiling water bath for 15 min and mix
occasionally. Ensure that there are no gelatinous lumps.
7. On removing the tubes from the boiling water bath, immediately
add 4 mL of Con A solvent (Buffer 3; page 4), mix thoroughly
and then quantitatively transfer the tube contents (by repeated
washing with Con A solvent) to a 25 mL volumetric flask.
Dilute to volume with Con A solvent (this is Solution A). If
necessary, filter this solution through Whatman® No. 1 filter
paper (this step will be necessary for whole flour samples).

NOTE: This solution should be analysed within 2 h.

B. Con A Precipitation of Amylopectin and Determination

of Amylose
1. Transfer 1.0 mL of Solution A to a 2.0 mL Eppendorf®
microfuge tube. Add 0.50 mL of Con A solution (bottle 1), cap
the tube and gently mix by repeated inversion. Avoid frothing
of the sample.
2. Allow the tube to stand for 1 h at room temperature.
Centrifuge at 14,000 g for 10 min in a microfuge at room
temperature.

NOTE:
1. Samples in Con A Solvent (i.e. Solution A as described in
Section A above) cannot be left for extended periods because
the amylose will tend to retrograde and precipitate.
2. The time required for effective Con A precipitation of the
amylopectin (Step B1 above) is 1 h at room temperature.
However, these solutions should not be left for longer than
2 h as the amylose will tend to retrograde.
3. In this procedure, pre-treatment of the samples with ethanol
has the added advantage of removing any soluble sugars in the
sample that would otherwise interfere with the assay.

3. Transfer 1 mL of the supernatant to a 15 mL centrifuge tube.

Add 3 mL of 100 mM sodium acetate buffer, pH 4.5. This
reduces the pH to ~ 5. Mix the contents, lightly stopper (with
a marble) and heat in a boiling water bath for 5 min to denature
the Con A.

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4. Place the tube in a water bath at 40°C and allow to equilibrate
for 5 min. Add 0.1 mL of amyloglucosidase/α-amylase enzyme
mixture (page 3; solution 2) and incubate at 40°C for 30 min.
Centrifuge the tube at 2,000 g for 5 min.
5. To 1.0 mL aliquots of the supernatant add 4 mL of GOPOD
Reagent (Reagent B). Incubate at 40°C for 20 min. Incubate the
Reagent Blank and the D-Glucose Controls concurrently.

NOTE:
The Reagent Blank is prepared by adding 1.0 mL of 100 mM
sodium acetate buffer (Buffer 1; page 4) to 4.0 mL of GOPOD
Reagent and incubating at 40°C for 20 min.
D-Glucose Controls (duplicate) comprise 0.1 mL of D-glucose
standard solution (1 mg/mL), 0.9 mL of sodium acetate buffer and
4.0 mL of GOPOD Reagent. This value is not used in the
calculation, however we suggest that it is performed to ensure
that there are no problems with this part of the assay.

6. Read the absorbance of each sample and the D-glucose controls

at 510 nm against the reagent blank.

C. Determination of Total Starch

1. Mix 0.5 mL of Solution A with 4 mL of 100 mM sodium acetate
buffer, pH 4.5.
2. Add 0.1 mL of amyloglucosidase/α-amylase solution and incubate
the mixture at 40°C for 10 min.
3. Transfer 1.0 mL aliquots (in duplicate) of this solution to glass
test tubes, add 4 mL of GOPOD Reagent (solution 4) and mix
well. Incubate at 40°C for 20 min. This incubation should be
performed concurrently with the samples and standards from
Section B above.

CALCULATION OF AMYLOSE CONTENT (%):

Amylose, % (w/w)
= Absorbance (Con A Supernatant) x 6.15 x 100
Absorbance (Total Starch Aliquot) 9.2 1

= Absorbance (Con A Supernatant) x 66.8

Absorbance (Total Starch Aliquot)

Where 6.15 and 9.2 are dilution factors for the Con A and Total
Starch extracts respectively.

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REFERENCES:
1. Juliano, B. O. (1971). A simplified way for milled-rice amylose.
Cereal Sci. Today, 16, 334-338.
2. Berry, C. S., l’Anson, K., Miles, M. J., Morris, V. J. & Russell,
P. L. J. (1988). Physical chemical characterization of resistant
starch from wheat. J. Cereal Sci., 8, 203-206.
3. Sievert, D. & Pomeranz, Y. (1989). Enzyme resistant starch I.
Characterization by enzymatic, thermoanalytical, and microscopic
methods. Cereal Chem., 66, 342-347.
4. Tester, R. F. & Morrison, W. R. (1990). Swelling and
Gelatinization of Cereal Starches. I. Effects of Amylopectin,
Amylose, and Lipids. Cereal Chem., 67, 551-557.
5. Leloup, V. M., Colonna, P. & Buleon, A. (1991). Influence of
amylose-amylopectin ratio on gel properties. J. Cereal Sci., 13,
1-13.
6. Matheson, N. K. (1971). Amylose changes in the starch of
developing wheat grains. Phytochem., 10, 3213-3219.
7. Morrison, W. R. & Laignet, B. (1983). An improved colorimetric
procedure for determining apparent and total amylose in cereal
and other starches. J. Cereal Sci., 1, 9-20.
8. Knutson, C. A. (1986). A Simplified Colorimetric Procedure for
Determination of Amylose in Maize Starches. Cereal Chem., 63,
89-92.
9. Chrastil, J. (1987). Improved colorimetric determination of
amylose in starches or flours. Carbohydr. Res., 159, 154-158.
10. International Organisation for Standardisation (1987).
ISO 6647:1987E. Rice: determination of amylose content.
11. Gibson, T. S., Solah, V. A. & McCleary, B. V. (1996). A
procedure to measure amylose in cereal starches and flours with
Concanavalin A. J. Cereal Science, 25, 111-119.
12. Matheson, N. K. & Welsh, L. A. (1988). Estimation and
fractionation of the essentially unbranched (amylose) and
branched (amylopectin) components of starches with
Concanavalin A. Carbohydr. Res., 180, 301-313.
13. Yun, S. H. & Matheson, N. K. (1990). Estimation of Amylose
Content of Starches after Precipitation of Amylopectin by
Concanavalin-A. Starch/Starke, 42, 302-305.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
The procedure described in this booklet was developed in
association with the Biological and Chemical Research Institute,
NSW Agriculture, Rydalmere, NSW, Australia. We also
acknowledge many valuable discussions with Professor N. K.
Matheson during the development of this procedure.

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Figure 1: Effect of Con A concentration on the level of amylose determined
in starch samples by the modified Con A procedure. ■ = high
amylose maize starch (74.4% w/w amylose), ● = rice starch
(16.9% w/w amylose), □ = maize starch (1.9% w/w amylose). The
vertical dashed line represents the conditions used in the final
assay format.

Figure 2: Effect of precipitation reaction time on the amylose determined

in starch samples by the modified Con A procedure. ■ = high
amylose maize starch (74.4% w/w amylose), ● = rice starch
(16.9% w/w amylose), □ = maize starch (1.9% w/w amylose). The
vertical dashed line represents the conditions used in the final
assay format.

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Figure 3: Effect of sample size on the amylose determined in starch samples
by the modified Con A procedure. ■ = high amylose maize starch
(74.4% w/w amylose), ● = rice starch (16.9% w/w amylose),
□ = maize starch (1.9% w/w amylose). The vertical dashed lines
represent the conditions used in the final assay format.

Figure 4: Mixed amylose/amylopectin standard curve for the modified Con

A procedure. The regression equation is y = 0.956 x + 3.259
and the correlation coefficient 0.999. Nominal amylose contents
are predicted values based on the proportion of ICN potato
amylose (~ 100% w/w amylose) and waxy maize starch (~ 0% w/w
amylose based on potentiometric iodine titration) in the mixed
standard. Data points are means of duplicate determinations.

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 Bray Business Park, Bray,
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A98 YV29,
IRELAND.
Telephone: (353.1) 286 1220
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Internet: www.megazyme.com
E-Mail: [email protected]

WITHOUT GUARANTEE
The information contained in this booklet is, to the best of our knowledge, true and accurate, but
since the conditions of use are beyond our control, no warranty is given or is implied in respect of
any recommendation or suggestions which may be made or that any use will not infringe any patents.

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