Changes in Content and Composition of the Fructose Polymers in Tubers of Helianthus tuberosus L. during Growth of Daughter Plants

Most of the dry weight of sprouting Jerusalem artichoke tuberswas lost during the first few weeks of growth of the new shoots;at least 80 per cent. of this loss was accounted for by disappearanceof polymerized fructose. It was demonstrated that much, if notall, of this material was translocated to the growing shoots,presumably in the form of sucrose. Depolymerization of fructoseresidues occurred during this process, and individual changesin the mono-, oligo-, and poly-saccharide fractions were consistentwith the hypothesis that a specific hydrolytic enzyme, knownto occur in tuber extracts, is involved.