Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Composition and Flowering Quality of Cacahuacintle Maize Populations from the High Valleys of Mexico

  • Research
  • Published:
Plant Foods for Human Nutrition Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Cacahuacintle is one of the maize types with great demand for pozole preparation; however, little is known about the variation in chemical composition and flowered grain quality among populations. Physicochemical characteristics, flowered grain quality, pasting properties, and starch microstructure were evaluated in 33 populations of Cacahuacintle maize collected in Valles Altos, Mexico. The seeds samples of corn were obtained in 2017 from local farmers in the states of Mexico, Puebla, and Tlaxcala. Results were analyzed under a completely randomized design, and the ANOVA, Tukey test, and principal components were obtained. The ANOVA showed significance (p ≤ 0.05) in 18 of the 22 variables evaluated. The TE-6, AM-7, and CA-6 populations were outstanding for the good quality of their protein, pasting viscosity, and flowered grain quality. Nine populations collected in Calimaya, estate of Mexico, and Serdan Valley, state of Puebla, presented excellent physical, pasting, and flowery grain characteristics, with reduced protein content and lysine and tryptophan values typical of maize with normal endosperm. The softness of the endosperm grain, starch microstructural, and pasting characteristics of Cacahuacintle maize populations have a fundamental role in reducing the time and increasing the flowered grain volume, properties that were different from those observed in the Chalqueño, included as dent maize check. Variations in grain quality among Cacahuacintle maize populations is an important genetic resource for the improvement of the nutritional and flowering quality of Cacahuacintle maize.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

Data Availability

No data was used for the research described in the article.

References

  1. Vázquez CMG, Santiago RD (2013) Características fisicoquímicas y calidad del pozole del maíz cacahuacintle procesado mediante tres métodos. Rev Fitotec Mex 36:357–366

    Google Scholar 

  2. Figueroa JDC, Véles-Medina JJ, Tolentino-López EM, Gaytan-Martínez M, Aragón-Cuevas F, Palacios-Rojas N, Willcox M (2013) Effect of traditional nixtamalization process on starch annealing and the relation to pozole quality. J Food Process Eng 36:704–714. https://doi.org/10.1111/jfpe.12034

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Wellhausen J, Roberts M, Hernández E X (1952) Races of maize in Mexico: their origin characteristics and distribution. The Bussey Institution of Harvard Univesity, USA, pp 13–44

    Google Scholar 

  4. Flores-Hernández LA, Castillo-González F, Nieto-Sotelo J, Vázquez-Carrillo MG, Livera-Muñoz M, Benítez-Riquelme I, Ramírez-Hernández A (2021) Diversidad agro-morfológica del maíz Cacahuacintle de los Valles Altos de México. Rev Fitotec Mex 45:13–22

    Google Scholar 

  5. Bonifacio VEI, Salinas MY, Ramos RA, Carrillo OA (2005) Calidad pozolera en colectas de maíz Cacahuacintle. Rev Fitotec Mex 28:253–260

    Google Scholar 

  6. Hernández GCA, Salinas MY, Antonio LP, Santacruz VA, Castillo GF, Corona TT (2014) Calidad pozolera en poblaciones de maíz cacahuacintle de los Valles Altos de Puebla, México. Revista Mexicana Ciencias Agrícolas (REMEXCA) 5:703–716

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Twumasi-Afriye A, Palacios RN, Friesen D, Teklewold A, Wegary GD, De Groote H, Prasanna BM (2016) Guidelines for the quality control of quality protein maize (QPM) seed and grain. Addis Ababa, CIMMYT, p 38

    Google Scholar 

  8. Mertz ET, Bates LS, Nelson OE (1964) Mutant gene that changes protein composition and increases lysine content of maize endosperm. Science 145:279–280

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Salinas MY, Ramos RA, Vázquez CMG (2009) Calidad proteínica en líneas de cuatro poblaciones de maíz Cacahuacintle. In: Ramírez CAM and Najera RMB (ed) Mejoramiento, Conservación y Uso de los Maíces Criollos. Sociedad Mexicana de Fitogenética, México, pp 48–56

    Google Scholar 

  10. Vázquez-Carrillo MG, Santiago-Ramos D, Palacios-Rojas N (2016) Calidad industrial y nutricional de razas mexicanas de maíz pozolero. Biblioteca Básica de Agricultura. Colegio de Postgraduados, México, p 159

    Google Scholar 

  11. Serna-Saldivar SO, Amaya GCA, Herrera MP, Melesio CJL, Preciado ORE, Terron IAD, Vazquez CMG (2008) Evaluation of the lime-cooking and tortilla making properties of quality protein maize hybrids grown in Mexico. Plant Foods Hum Nutr 63:119–125. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11130-008-0080-1

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Vázquez-Carrillo MG, Santiago-Ramos D, Domínguez-Rendón E, Audelo-Benites MA (2017) Effects of two different pozole preparation processes on quality variables and pasting properties of processed maize grain. J Food Qual 1:1–15. https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/8627363

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Keleman A, Hellin J (2009) Specialty maize varieties in Mexico: a case study in market-driven agro-biodiversity conservation. J Lat Am Geogr 8:147–174. https://www.jstor.org/stable/25765266

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Hellin J, Keleman A, López D, Donnet1 L, Flores D (2013) La importancia de los nichos de mercado. Un estudio de caso del maíz azul y del maíz para pozole en México. Rev Fitotec Mex 6:315–328

  15. Narváez-González ED, Figueroa-Cárdenas JD, Taba S (2007) Aspectos micro-estructurales y posibles usos del maíz de acuerdo con su origen geográfico. Rev Fitotec Mex 30:321–325

    Google Scholar 

  16. Santiago-Ramos D, Figueroa-Cárdenas JD, Mariscal-Moreno RM, Escalante-Aburto A, Ponce-García N, Véles-Medina JJ (2018) Physical and chemical changes undergone by pericarp and endosperm during corn nixtamalization. J Cereal Sci 8:108–117. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcs.2018.04.003

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors thank all the staff of INIFAP’s maize quality laboratories and UNAM’s Queretaro Campus for their technical assistance in grain and food product analysis. We also thank the Cacahuacintle maize farmers of the study regions for their support and trust.

Funding

Funding for this study was provided by the National Council for Science and Technology (CONACyT), a program of the Mexican government to support graduate students. This publication was partially supported by the Colegio de Postgraduados (CP) an institution of the Mexican government to train high-level professionals.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Postgrado de Recursos Genéticos y Productividad-Genética, Colegio de Postgraduados, Campus Montecillo. Km 36.5 Carretera México-Texcoco, Montecillo, Texcoco, Edo. de México, 56230, México

    Luis Antonio Flores-Hernández, Fernando Castillo-González, Manuel Livera-Muñoz, Ignacio Benítez-Riquelme & Antonio Ramírez-Hernández

  2. Laboratorio de Calidad de Maíz, , Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales, Agrícolas y Pecuarias, Campo Experimental Valle de México. Km. 13.5 Carretera Los Reyes-Texcoco, Coatlinchán, Texcoco, Estado de, 56250, México

    María Gricelda Vázquez-Carrillo

  3. Laboratorio de Fisiología Molecular, Jardín Botánico, Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Circuito exterior s/n, Ciudad Universitaria, Alcaldía Coyoacán, Ciudad de México, 04510, México

    Jorge Nieto-Sotelo

Authors
  1. Luis Antonio Flores-Hernández
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Fernando Castillo-González
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. María Gricelda Vázquez-Carrillo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Manuel Livera-Muñoz
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Ignacio Benítez-Riquelme
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Jorge Nieto-Sotelo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Antonio Ramírez-Hernández
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

L. A. Flores-Hernández: conceptualization; J. Nieto-Sotelo, M. G. Vázquez-Carrillo. Data curation; L. A. Flores-Hernández, A. Ramírez-Hernández; formal analysis; F. Castillo-González, I. Benítez-Riquelme: funding acquisition; M. G. Vázquez-Carrillo: methodology; L. A .Flores-Hernández, M. G. Vázquez-Carrillo, M. Libera-Muñoz: original draft writing; L. A. Flores-Hernández, M. G. Vázquez-Carrillo: writing review and editing.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to María Gricelda Vázquez-Carrillo.

Ethics declarations

Statements and Declarations

Great variability was found among Cacahuacintle maize populations for physicochemical characteristics, pasting, and flowering properties, and protein grain quality. The TE-6, AM-7, and CA-6 populations were outstanding for the good quality of their protein, pasting viscosity, and flowered grain quality. Our results show the potential of Cacahuacintles as a source of quality protein in the Mexican diet.

Competing Interest

None

Ethics Declarations

not applicable.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Electronic Supplementary Material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary Material 1

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Flores-Hernández, L.A., Castillo-González, F., Vázquez-Carrillo, M.G. et al. Composition and Flowering Quality of Cacahuacintle Maize Populations from the High Valleys of Mexico. Plant Foods Hum Nutr 78, 351–357 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11130-023-01062-w

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11130-023-01062-w

Keywords

Search

Navigation