Abstract

S3-05

Preliminary Assessment of Kudeme: A Traditional Cassava-based Inoculum for Amylolytic and Cellulolytic Enzyme Activities

Dziedzoave N.T¹., A.J. Graffham², A. Westby² and W.A. Plahar¹

1.   Food Research Institute, Box M.20, Accra, Ghana.

Kudeme is a traditional cassava-based inoculum used to improve the texture of Agbelima, a fermented cassava dough that is common in Ghana.  It was hypothesised that the action of Kudeme could be due to the presence of starch and cellulose degrading enzymes in the inoculum.  This hypothesis was tested using two types of Kudeme, blanched and toasted, which were assessed for four types of enzyme activity.  The detected enzyme activity levels in decreasing order of magnitude were, for the blanched Kudeme type: a-amylase 0.20 U/g, cellulase 0.11 U/g, amyloglucosidase 0.04 U/g and limit dextrinase 0.01 U/g.  For the toasted Kudeme type: cellulase 0.05 U/g, amyloglucosidase 0.04 U/g and limit dextrinase 0.002 U/g.  The activity of a-Amylase was not detected in toasted Kudeme.  The blanched type showed a significantly higher limit dextrinase activity (P<0.05) than the toasted type.  For the other enzymes, no significant difference was observed between the two kudeme types.  The period of fermentation used in the preparation of the inoculum had a significant effect (P<0.05) only on the limit dextrinase activity.  Results showed that enzyme activity of the inoculum could be optimised through manipulation of fermentation conditions.  The texture-improving effect of Kudeme on Agbelima is partly attributed to the degradation of cassava tissue by enzymes present in Kudeme.  The potentials of other commercial uses of Kudeme are discussed.