Legumes: Source of Bioactive Compounds and Their Potential Use in Legume Crops Improvement: A Review

The bioactive phytochemicals are the most important bioactive compounds against insect herbivores. These phytochemicals produced by many legumes and react herbivore attacks. Therefore, keeping in mind the said facts, this review discusses the potential use of bioactive compounds like Proteinase inhibitors, trypsin inhibitors, lectins, vicillins (7S storage proteins), phenolics, amino acids, sugars and alpha-amylase inhibitors in legume plants as most important weapons that confer resistance against herbivorous insects. These inhibitors inhibiting proteases present in the larval gut and has insecticidal potential against insect pests. This review demonstrates the potential of natural phytochemicals from legume plants and or artificially diet incorporate to inhibit the development of pathogens and insect pests. Thus, legumes can be used to produce phytochemicals as bio-pesticides and minimize or avoid the use of agrochemicals in crop protection. This ability making them interesting bioactive for next generation of sustainable pesticides for more sustainable agriculture.