Physicochemical Properties of Moringa oleifera Leaves Grown in Valencian Community (Spain)

Abstract

[EN] Moringa oleifera is a foliated tree widely cultivated in tropical latitudes, which is highly adaptable to climatic conditions and dry soils. Every part of the plant has nutritional, therapeutic or industrial benefits. This is due to its phytochemicals such as glucosinolates, phenolic compounds, alkaloids, terpenoids and tannins, high values of crude protein, carbohydrates, starch and lipids. In addition, the use of the leaves has increased considerably by the agro-food and biochemical industries since they are a valuable source of dietary proteins and essential amino acids. This work aimed to characterize three types of leaf from Moringa oleifera seeds with different origins (Thai (C1), Ghana (C2) and India (C3)), grown in the same plot, but with different cultural practices (intended for leaf production (C1 and C2) or sheath production (C3). For this, water content and optical properties were determined in the fresh leaves. Later the leaves were dried (50 ¿C for 8 h) and pulverized, analyzing their water content, antioxidant capacity, color and amino acid content. No significant differences were observed in fresh leaves in terms of humidity and color. In dry powder, a higher antioxidant capacity was registered in moringa type C2, with a% DPPH inhibition of 83.7%, although in all cases, it exceeded 60%, showing the high persistence of the antioxidants after drying. Serine, glutamic acid and alanine were the major amino acids with values of 373 ± 78, 301 ± 51 and 248 ± 9 mg/100 g of powder, respectively, without influencing the applied field treatment or origin.