“Studies on enhancement of carotenoids, folic acid, iron and their bioavailability in Moringa oleifera and in vitro propagation.

Saini, R. K. (2013) “Studies on enhancement of carotenoids, folic acid, iron and their bioavailability in Moringa oleifera and in vitro propagation. PhD thesis, University of Mysore.

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Abstract

Moringa oleifera Lam., commonly known as Drumstick tree, is a popular traditional source of leafy vegetables and pods that are rich in protein, various nutritional metabolites and other bioactives of nutraceutical importance. As Moringa is receiving popularity as an important food commodity, there is need to characterize its nutritional compounds, their further enhancement, and establish their biological functionalities by modern analytical methods. Studies done in this regard showed that among the eight Indian cultivars screened, cultivar Bhagya was found most promising, containing maximum amount (per 100g FW) of total carotenoids (80.48 mg), trans β-carotene (23.15 mg) and total folate (167.4 μg). Among the folates, 5- formyl-5,6,7,8-tetrahydrofolic acid (73.1 μg/100g FW) and 5,6,7,8-tetrahydrofolic acid (32.6 μg/100g FW) were most dominant forms in fresh foliage. Genetic diversity among the eight cultivars was evaluated by RAPD, ISSR and cytochrome P450-based molecular markers. Based on the three types of marker data, the eight cultivars of M. oleifera were grouped into four sub-clusters in a dendrogram, but without any distinct geographical pattern. This suggests the spread of planting material, as well as high rates of gene flow through cross pollination. Significant enhancement (0.5 to 1.5 fold) of folate, carotenoid, tocopherol and iron content was achieved through different ecofriendly non-GM based approaches. Among the enzymes of carotenoid biosynthetic pathway, the expression of lycopene β-cyclase (LCY-β) was maximum after elicitor treatment, suggesting the LCY-β mediated enhancement in the production of β- carotene in elicitor treated Moringa leaves. Enhanced production of α-tocopherol was also found concordant with 2.0-2.7 fold up-regulation of γ-tocopherol methyl transferase (γ-TMT). An In-vitro propagation protocol was developed and the performance of tissue cultured Moringa plants under field conditions was studied. Abstract Benzyladenine (BA) at 4.44 μM was found to be optimal for producing maximum of 9.0±1.0 axillary shoots per explant after 15 days of inoculation. Efficient in-vitro rooting (100%) of individual shoot cultures was observed on medium containing 2.85 μM indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) along with 4.92 μM indole-3-butyric acid (IBA). Effects of dietary iron and folate supplementation from dehydrated Moringa leaves on molecular and biochemical indices of iron and folate status were studied in rat model. Dietary iron from Moringa leaf was found more beneficial compared to ferric citrate to overcome the effect of iron deficiency, which was validated through biochemical and molecular studies of iron regulatory and binding proteins. Relative bioavailability of folate from dehydrated leaves of Moringa was observed to be 81.9%. Among the various molecular markers studied, changes in relative expression of liver hepcidin mRNA was most significant, which can be used as the most sensitive and robust molecular marker for iron deficiency anemia.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Moringa oleifera, leafy vegetables, Drumstick tree,Dietary iron
Subjects:	500 Natural Sciences and Mathematics > 04 Chemistry and Allied Sciences > 14 Carotenoid Chemistry 600 Technology > 08 Food technology > 23 Vegetables
Divisions:	Plant Cell Biotechnology
Depositing User:	Food Sci. & Technol. Information Services
Date Deposited:	20 Mar 2015 07:36
Last Modified:	20 Mar 2015 07:36
URI:	http://ir.cftri.res.in/id/eprint/11767

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