A review of micronutrient deficiencies and analysis of maize contribution to nutrient requirements of women and children in Eastern and Southern Africa

This paper reviews and analyses the importance of maize as staple food in Eastern and Southern Africa (E&SA) and contributes in understanding the nexus between maize nutritional composition and prevalence of micronutrient deficiencies (MNDs) in these regions. MNDs remain a major public health concern particularly for women and children, with calcium, iodine, iron, selenium, zinc, folate and vitamin A deficiencies being the most common. Estimates of their prevalence are among the highest in E&SA: iron-deficient anemia affected 26 to 31% of women of reproductive age, and deficiencies up to 53%, 36%, 66%, 75% and 62% for vitamin A, iodine, zinc, calcium and selenium, respectively, were measured in populations of these regions. Besides, these two regions show the highest worldwide maize per capita consumption (g/person/day) as main staple, with 157 in Eastern Africa and 267 in Southern Africa, including up to 444 in Lesotho. The analysis of food composition tables from these regions showed that 100 g of maize foods consumed by these populations could to some extent, contribute in satisfying dietary reference intakes (DRIs) of children and women in energy, proteins, carbohydrates, magnesium, zinc, vitamins B1 and B6. However, it provides very low supply of fats, calcium, sodium, selenium, vitamins C, A and E. The high occurrence of MNDs and considerable nutritional potential of maize consumed in E&SA can be explained by loss of nutrients due to processing practices, low food diversification and reduced nutrients bioavailability. Success cases of the main strategies to tackle the issue of MNDs in these regions by improving maize nutritional quality are discussed in this paper. Maize fortification was shown to improve nutrition and health outcomes of population. Increasing dietary diversity by complementing maize with other foods has improved nutrition through integration of micronutrient-rich foods in the diet. Mostly, biofortification has successfully contributed in reducing vitamin A and zinc deficiencies in rural communities more than nutrient supplementation, fortification and dietary diversity

Green extraction of polyphenols from citrus peel by-products and their antifungal activity against Aspergillus flavus

Aspergillus flavus is a pathogenic fungus associated with food safety issues worldwide. This study investigated the antifungal activity of citrus peel extracts prepared using food-grade solvents (hot water or ethanol). Mandarin (Citrus reticulata) peel ethanol extracts inhibited the mycelial growth of A. flavus (39.60%) more effectively than those of orange (32.31%) and lemon (13.51%) after 7 days of incubation. The growth of A. flavus could be completely inhibited by mandarin extracts at 300–400 mg mL−1, depending on the extraction solvent. Solid-phase extraction (SPE) separated the polyphenol-rich fractions, which showed up to 40% higher antifungal activity than crude extracts. Twelve polyphenols (2 phenolic acids and 10 flavonoids) were identified by HPLC-DAD, narirutin and hesperidin were the most abundant. In conclusion, citrus peels are promising bioresources of antifungal agents with potential applications in food and other industries

Phytosanitary practices and evaluation of 17 pesticides residues in tomatoes fruits produced in Foumbot District Western Highland-Cameroon

The involvement of pesticides in agriculture requires the implementation of best phytosanitary practices in order to guarantee the health of populations and preserve the environment. This study focused on the assessment of phytosanitary practices of tomato producers in Foumbot, Western Highlands-Cameroon, and evaluated the residues of 17 pesticides in tomatoes. The methodological approach consisted of field investigations by survey, collection of samples, pesticide residue extraction using QuEChERS method, and their analysis by gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Survey of 100 farmers showed that, they did not comply with the instructions for the use of plant protection products: 56% of farmers interviewed increased the dose of products when they noticed its ineffectiveness; 93% did not the respect pre-harvest intervals; while 77% increased the application frequency at the time of fruiting. All the producers work without personal protective equipment (PPE) and 68% of them use empty packaging for packaging consumable including water, red oil and palm wine. The reuse of empty packaging could expose populations (producers and consumers) to numerous health risks. Regarding pesticides residues, 03 actives ingredients were detected and quantified in the samples, all the samples were contaminated by lambda-cyhalothrin, 86.66% by cypermethrin and 66.66% by acetamiprid. Moreover, residue concentrations above the maximum residue limit (MRL) were found in all the positive samples of lambda-cyhalothrin, and 92.30% of cypermethrin positive samples. This study shows that utilization of plant protection products in Foumbot requires extensive monitoring with producers, in order to reduce risk of consumers exposure

Evaluation of 99 Pesticide Residues in Major Agricultural Products from the Western Highlands Zone of Cameroon Using QuEChERS Method Extraction and LC-MS/MS and GC-ECD Analyses

There is no information available on pesticide residue levels in major food commodities harvested in Cameroon, especially from the western highlands region, the food basket of the country. Hence, this study evaluated the residues of 99 pesticides in 72 samples of 12 agricultural products collected in the region, using QuEChERS (Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, and Safe) method extraction, and analyzed by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and gas chromatography with electron capture detection (GC-ECD). This method was suitable for detecting the targeted compounds: For 81 pesticides by LC-MS/MS, the limit of quantification (LOQ) was between 0.0004 and 0.0537 mg/kg; and for 18 halogenated pesticides by GC-ECD, it ranged from 0.0012 to 0.2180 mg/kg. The residues of 62 pesticides, including 12 banned compounds, were found in the samples. Insecticides (39.7%) were the most prevalent group, with all the samples containing at least one pesticide. Twenty-one pesticides (34.4%) exceeded their European Union maximum residue limits (MRLs) and 22 pesticides (34.4%) were found in all 6 sampling locations. Malathion and p,p′-DDT were the most distributed pesticides, found in almost all the samples and sampling sites. Food items with the highest rates of positive results were chili pepper (23.2%), white pepper (20.2%), kidney beans (17.3%), and soybeans (17.2%). Samples with residues above their MRLs represented 38% of all the positive analyses; chili pepper (6.4%) and kidney beans (5.5%) were found to have the most residues above their MRLs. The most critical food commodities were kidney beans, soybeans, chili pepper, and maize. This data presents scientific evidence that investigation into continuous monitoring and good regulation of pesticide usage in Cameroon is needed, and paves the way for health risks analysis

Molecular Characterization of Indian Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) Varieties for Cold - Induced Sweetening Using SSR Markers

Cold - induced sweetening developed during storage of potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L .) at low temperature is a crucial factor influencing the processing quality of potato tubers and remains one of the principal concerns of potato processing industry . Developing CIS - resistant genotypes is the most effective method to cope with this stress . In this study , the genetic diversity of 11 Indian potato varieties with different reactions to CIS was assessed using 10 SSR primers . The primers detected a total of 42 alleles arranged in 44 different configurations , among which 37 alleles (88%) were polymorphic . The polymorphic information content (PIC) value of the SSR locus ranged from 0 . 473 to 0 . 787 thus indicating a high utility of these markers for study of genetic diversity in potato . A number of polymorphic fragments appeared to be specific to a given sugar - forming group . Primer Sti007 generated one fragment Sti007 131bp present only in all the high sugar - forming varieties . The dendrogram derived from Dice ’ s similarity coefficients among the 11 varieties could partially but efficiently differentiate close parents and sugar - forming groups among the varieties . These findings demonstrate the effectiveness of SSR markers to assess the genetic variation among potato cultivars in order to develop molecular markers associated with CIS to improve potato breeding programs

Morphological and molecular identification of pathogenic fungi of Monodora myristica Dunal kernels and their response to different phytoextracts

Identification of fungi from calabash nutmeg kernels was based on their morphological characteristics and analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences of their genomic DNA. Antifungal activity of aqueous, methanolic and ethanolic extracts of four plants species (Azadirachta indica, Citrus sinensis, Moringa oleifera and Tithonia diversifolia) was tested in vitro at 50, 75, 100 and 125 mg/ml for aqueous extracts and 40, 60, 80 and 100 mg/ml for methanolic and ethanolic extracts. Mancozeb (1 mg/ml) and distilled water were used as positive and negative controls, respectively. The most frequently isolated fungi were Cercospora purpurea (34.28%), Fusarium oxysporum (23.81%) and Aspergillus flavus (17.14%). C. purpurea and F. oxysporum isolates were more aggressive after inoculation on healthy kernels. All the extracts tested, inhibited the growth of the fungi compared to the negative control, except the aqueous extract of T. diversifolia against C. purpurea and F. oxysporum and the methanolic extract of M. oleifera against F. oxysporum at 75 mg/ml. The efficiency of aqueous extracts of M. oleifera and C. sinensis was significantly lower (P<0.05) as compared to the reference fungicide on growth of A. niger at 125 mg/ml. Antifungal activity of methanolic extracts of A. indica, C. sinensis and T. diversifolia as well as ethanolic extracts of A. indica and M. oleifera was significantly equal to mancozeb at 100 mg/ml on A. flavus. Aqueous extracts of M. oleifera and methanolic extracts of A. indica and C. sinensis could be used for protection of Monodora myristica kernels against post-harvest fungi

Morphological and molecular identification of pathogenic fungi of Monodora myristica Dunal kernels and their response to different phytoextracts

Identification of fungi from calabash nutmeg kernels was based on their morphological characteristics and analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences of their genomic DNA. Antifungal activity of aqueous, methanolic and ethanolic extracts of four plants species (Azadirachta indica, Citrus sinensis, Moringa oleifera and Tithonia diversifolia) was tested in vitro at 50, 75, 100 and 125 mg/ml for aqueous extracts and 40, 60, 80 and 100 mg/ml for methanolic and ethanolic extracts. Mancozeb (1 mg/ml) and distilled water were used as positive and negative controls, respectively. The most frequently isolated fungi were Cercospora purpurea (34.28%), Fusarium oxysporum (23.81%) and Aspergillus flavus (17.14%). C. purpurea and F. oxysporum isolates were more aggressive after inoculation on healthy kernels. All the extracts tested, inhibited the growth of the fungi compared to the negative control, except the aqueous extract of T. diversifolia against C. purpurea and F. oxysporum and the methanolic extract of M. oleifera against F. oxysporum at 75 mg/ml. The efficiency of aqueous extracts of M. oleifera and C. sinensis was significantly lower (P<0.05) as compared to the reference fungicide on growth of A. niger at 125 mg/ml. Antifungal activity of methanolic extracts of A. indica, C. sinensis and T. diversifolia as well as ethanolic extracts of A. indica and M. oleifera was significantly equal to mancozeb at 100 mg/ml on A. flavus. Aqueous extracts of M. oleifera and methanolic extracts of A. indica and C. sinensis could be used for protection of Monodora myristica kernels against post-harvest fungi

Seed storage proteins as a protein marker for identification and characterization of QPM and normal maize inbred lines

Twenty Maize Inbreds Has Been Studied through Seed Storage Protein Markers for Approaching characterization among three groups of maize inbreds viz., low, intermediate and high lysine and tryptophan containing QPM and normal lines. SDS-PAGE of protein fractions showed variation into the three groups of maize inbreds. When comparing four fractions of total soluble proteins, they exhibit a range of variable bands some polypeptides were specifically express in QPM lines, could group the maize lines into two main clusters, QPM and normal maize lines. From these findings, it can be concluded that, the newly separated polypeptide protein bands could be used as a biochemical protein marker which indirectly help for the selection and development of QPM maize inbred lines. Thus, electrophoresis of protein fractions is useful to differentiate QPM and normal inbred lines based on variation in banding pattern

A review of postharvest approaches to reduce fungal and mycotoxin contamination of foods

Contamination of agricultural and food products by some fungi species that produce mycotoxins can result in unsafe food and feed. Mycotoxins have been demonstrated to have disease‐causing activities, including carcinogenicity, immune toxicity, teratogenicity, neurotoxicity, nephrotoxicity, and hepatotoxicity. Most of mycotoxins are heat stable and cannot be easily destroyed by conventional thermal food processing or domestic cooking methods. Postharvest approaches to prevent growth of mycotoxin‐producing fungi and detoxify mycotoxins from contaminated food are important topics in food safety research. Physical, chemical, and biological methods have been applied to prevent fungal growth or mycotoxin production, or to reduce mycotoxin content in the postharvest period and contribute toward mitigating against the effects of mycotoxins on human health. This literature review aims to evaluate postharvest approaches that have been applied to control both fungi growth and mycotoxin content in food and discuss their potential for upscaling to industrial scale

Effect of Storage Temperature on Carbohydrate Metabolism and Development of Cold‐Induced Sweetening in Indian Potato (Solanum Tuberosum L.) Varieties

This study investigated the changes in carbohydrate metabolism in tubers of 11 Indian potato varieties stored at room temperature, 15C and 4C for 150 days to understand the development of cold-induced sweetening (CIS). Low-temperature storage negligibly influenced starch and maltose contents of the tubers but induced a significant increase of reducing sugars, total soluble sugars, fructose, glucose and hexoses : sucrose ratio, and a decrease of sucrose content was noticeable at 4C. A strong positive correlation was found between reducing sugars and total soluble sugars, and between fructose and glucose. The activity of β-amylase was considerably increased by storage at low temperature, and it weakly correlated with starch content. Also, the absence of maltose accumulation with increased β-amylase activity was observed. Acid invertase activity drastically rose at low temperature and strongly paralleled reducing sugars, glucose, fructose and hexose : sucrose ratio. The K. Jyoti variety was designated as CIS-tolerant and the K. Badshah variety as CIS-susceptible