Reduction of cyanide content of cassava flour in Mozambique by the wetting method |
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Authors: | Arnaldo Cumbana Estevao Mirione Julie Cliff J. Howard Bradbury |
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Affiliation: | 1. Laboratorio Provincial de Higiene de Alimentos e Aguas, Direccao Provincial da Saude, Beira, Mozambique;2. Direccao Provincial da Saude, CP 14, Nampula, Mozambique;3. Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, CP 257, Maputo, Mozambique;4. Monash University, Clayton, Vict. 3168, Australia;5. Division of Botany and Zoology, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia |
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Abstract: | Fifty cassava flour samples from Mogincual District of Nampula Province in Mozambique were found to contain, on average, 43 mg HCN equivalents/kg flour (ppm), of total cyanide, which is typical for a year of average rainfall. Five gram samples of the 30 flour samples of highest cyanide content were mixed with water and left for 5 h at 30 °C and it was found that the mean% retention of cyanide was 16.7%. Using 500 g instead of 5 g samples caused an increase in the % retention due to accumulation of the very weak acid, HCN, in the damp flour mass, which also decreased its pH and somewhat reduced the rate of breakdown of linamarin catalysed by linamarase. This problem was overcome by spreading out the damp flour in an approximately 0.5 cm thick layer on a tray, which allowed the release of HCN. |
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Keywords: | Cyanide Cassava flour Wetting method Konzo Linamarin Linamarase Mozambique |
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