粟、黍和狗尾草的淀粉粒形态比较及其在植物考古研究中的潜在意义

MICROMORPHOLOGY CHARACTERISTICS OF STARCH GRAINS FROM Setaria italica, Panicum miliaceum AND S. viridis AND ITS SIGNIFICATION FOR ARCHAEOBOTANY

为了区分农作物与野生草类的淀粉粒形态,对现代粟(Setaria italica)、黍(Panicum miliaceum)和狗尾草(Setaria viridis)的淀粉粒形态进行了比较.观察结果表明,粟的淀粉粒以圆球形单粒为主,脐点位于中央,大部分由脐点向外有1～3条放射线,表面光滑,淀粉粒平均长度约19μm.黍的淀粉粒以多角形单粒为主,脐点位于中央,但很多淀粉粒的脐点不是很明显.在一些脐点形成1～3条射线,表面光滑,淀粉粒平均长度约为19μm.狗尾草淀粉粒以卵形为主,脐点位于中央,表面可见层纹,边缘凹凸不平且常有裂隙形成,淀粉粒平均长度约为18μm.研究证明,利用粟、黍和狗尾草的淀粉粒形态特征,可以有效地对考古遗存中的这几种禾本科植物遗迹进行区分.

Starch grains are microscopic granules that serve as the principal food storage mechanism of plants. They are found mainly in roots, tubers and seeds, where they are often produced in abundant numbers. The fact that starch grains of different plants possess a large variety of forms has also been recognized for some time. Here we distinguished the shapes, surface decorations and sizes of Setaria italica, Panicum miliaceum and S. viridis, in order to propose another effective approach to study the plant remains at archaeological sites in North China. We examined starch grains at a magnitude of 400. Starch grains of S. italica are mostly simple grains, with spherical shapes and smooth surface. It has a central hilum with distinct one to three short radiating fissures. The length ranges from 12～38 μm. Starch grains of P. miliaceum are mostly simple grains, smooth surface and spherical shape with 3 to 5 projecting corners. The central hilum is not distinct, with one to three short radiating fissures sometimes. The size of starch grains is 10～25 μm. The average length of starch grains of S. viridis is about 18 μm, oval shape with irregular depressions and pressure facets. Our study indicated that we can distinguish starch remains at archaeological sites effectively by the micromorphological characteristics of starch grains from plants. We propose starch grains to be another approach to study the origin of agriculture in China.