The food and medicinal values of indigenous leafy vegetables

The words traditional and indigenous green leafy vegetables (GLVs) described the GLVs that have their natural habitat and comely part of the food system in sub-Sahara Africa (SSA), as well as those that were introduced, use, and included in the food culture in the SSA. GLVs primarily provide the body with a substantive amount of essential nutrients such as proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, fats and oils, needed for its healthy survival.
This review focusses on the food and medicinal values of traditional and indigenous green leafy vegetables pertinent to SSA. Some of the commonly found phytochemicals (such as polyphenols (phenolic acids and flavonoids), alkaloid, terpenoids and carotenoids) profound in indigenous GLVs were also mentioned.
Most importantly, the interaction of some GLVs and their extracts/bioactive compounds with some biomolecules [α- amylase, α- glucosidase, angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE), acetylcholinesterase (AChE), butrylcholinesterases (BChE), monoamine oxidase (MAO), arginase, adenosine deaminase (ADA), Na⁺/K⁺ ATPase, phosphodieterease-5 (PDE-5), antioxidant enzymes (catalase, sodium dismutase, glutathione), malonaldehyde, nitric oxide (NO), etc.] linked to some degenerative diseases including Type-2 diabetes, hypertension, AlzheimerRSQUOs disease (AD), dementia, Parkinson diseases (PD) and erectile dysfunction were also highlighted.
Effects of some processing methods on the nutritional and medicinal properties of GLVs was also discussed.

African Vegetables Forum

G. Oboh, S.I. Oyeleye, A.O. Ademiluyi

green leafy vegetables, nutritional composition, phytochemicals, medicinal value

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2019.1238.15