Study on nutritional and phytochemical profile of seven edible food supplements of Uttarakhand (Garhwal Himalaya)

Medicinal plants are the potential sources of different natural molecules having wide pharmacological activities. The fruits and parts of these plants are also the sources of significant antioxidants and nutraceuticals having potent antioxidant potential and significant immuno-modulatory activities. The present study is the first report on wild edible food supplements that are endowed with various medicinal properties and significant antidiabetic, anticancer and anti-nephrolithiasis properties. The study was performed to determine the nutritional, mineral profile and phytochemical analysis of seven (7) medicinal plants viz. Cajanus indicus, Dolichos biflorus, Glycine soja, Benincasa cerifera, Setaria italica, Cleome viscosa and Hordeum vulgare for exploring and development of new, safe and potent drugs. The extraction was performed by fractionation with different solvents, while the nutrients and minerals present in all these plants were studied using Association of Official Analytical Chemists (AOAC) method and Inductively coupled plasma-mass-spectrometry (ICP-MS) techniques. The results of the study revealed the presence of significant nutrients and minerals in all the seven (7) plants studied. The present study revealed that, carbohydrates/glycosides were present in Cajanus indicus, Dolichos biflorus, Glycine soja, Benincasa cerifera, Setaria italica, Cleome viscosa and Hordeum vulgare while alkaloids were observed by Mayer’s test only in Cajanus indicus, Dolichos biflorus and Glycine soja. The flavonoids were observed in Cajanus indicus, Glycine soja,Benincasa cerifera, Cleome viscosa and Hordeum vulgare. The saponins were observed in Cajanus indicus, Glycine soja, Benincasa cerifera, Setaria italica and Hordeum vulgare. The tannins were observed as pyrogallol and catechol in Cajanus indicus, Glycine soja, Benincasa cerifera and Cleome viscosa. The unsaturated sterol and triterpene were observed by Liebermann Burchard test and Salkowski test in all the seven plants studied. The varied levels of mineral content were observed in Cajanus indicus, Dolichos biflorus, Glycine soja, Benincasa cerifera, Setaria italica, Cleome viscosa and Hordeum vulgare. The nutritional value of Cajanus indicus, Dolichos biflorus, Glycine soja, Benincasa cerifera, Setaria italica, Cleome viscosa and Hordeum vulgare. Graphic abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]. © 2021, Society for Plant Research.