Biochemical composition of maize (Zea mays L.) pollen : II. Effects of the endosperm mutants, waxy (wx), shrunken (sh 2) and sugary (su 1) on the carbohydrate and lipid percentage.

Mean percentages of sugars, water-soluble polysaccharides, starch, total carbohydrates and lipids were 40.1, 7.4, 28.6, 76.1, and 1.8 respectively. Differences among the mutants were found only for water-soluble polysaccharides with both wx and sh 2 decreasing the percentage a small but significant amount. In terms of the various carbohydrates measured, no correlation was found between the expression of these mutants in the pollen and the kernel.