Biological activity of glucosinolate derived compounds isolated from seed meal of Brassica crops and evaluated as plant and food protection agents

Glucosinolates are amino acid derived allelochemicals characteristic of plants of the order Capparales. These compounds are present in seeds of agriculturally common Brassica crops in varying quantities depending on the species (ref). The use of the remaining seed cake after oil extraction has traditionally been limited by the concentration of these compounds. However, the extraction of glucosinolates from seed meal is nowadays possible and it further contributes to an increased quality of the seed meal for feed (Sørensen et al., this conference). Glucosinolates are hydrolysed by endogenous enzymes (myrosinases; EC 3.2.1.147) and a number of compounds are produced depending on the parent glucosinolate and the environmental conditions.1 Among these compounds, oxazolidine-2-thiones are known for their antinutritional effects on monogastric animals, whereas isothiocyanates are fungicidal, nematocidal and herbicidal.2,3 The possibility for using glucosinolates as precursors for environmental friendly biocides therefore exists, which could contribute to increase the value of the Brassica seed meal

Glucosinolates in leaves of Moringa species grown and disseminated in Niger

Moringa leaves rank first among the most widely consumed leafy vegetables in Niger. Glucosinolate contents in leaves of five accessions of three Moringa species (M. oleifera, M. stenopetala and M. peregrina) ranged from 2.65 μmol/g in old leaves of M. stenopetala (Ethiopian-1) to 28.62 μmol/g in young leaves of M. oleifera (ICG-42). An Indian introduction, PKM-1 (M. oleifera) gave maximum leaf yield (7.5 t/ha) and had maximum consumer preference than the local (M. oleifera) and Ethiopian-1 (M. stenopetala) genotypes. Large scale dissemination of PKM-1 and use of other species under different production systems are described

Agronomic performance and yield stability of pea-barley intercropping in European organic farming systems

Intercropping of cereal and grain legumes in European cropping system (INTERCROP) is an European Project in which a multidisciplinary team of scientist conducts research on intercropping under different regional organic cropping systems. The project’s core experiments was a field trial in which pea and barley were intercropped in spring sowing and compared with respective sole crops during 2003-2005. One of the main deliverables of the Project (Workpackage 2) was the evaluation of agronomic performance of intercrop in term of yield advantage and yield stability. Results of this activity carried out, in five European Countries (Denmark, France, Germany, Italy and United Kingdom) in the basic field experiments, are presented in this contribution