When hydrolyzed in random fashion by acid or by a-amylase, amylose gradually loses the capacity to stain with iodine. As the degradation advances, the hyperchromic effect exhibited by the absorption spectra of the iodine complex is accompanied by a hypsochromic shift.l A quantitative measure of the specific absorption coefficient of the complex is provided by the peak value (P.V.), which is defined2 as the absorbance of a lo-% solution of polysaccharide in a standard iodine-iodide medium measured a t the wavelength of peak absorption, A

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