Nutraceutical characterisation of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) germplasm from Pakistan.
Malnourishment is one of the major issues faced by people of mountain areas of Pakistan. Common bean, being a rich source of protein, minerals, and nutraceutical compounds, is considered as a potential food to address the malnutrition problems in these areas. Azad Jammu and Kashmir is widely distributed with the indigenous unexplored landraces of common bean. In the present work, the nutritional profiling of 36 common bean ecotypes collected from the wide range of altitude, based on protein percentage, lysine contents, antioxidants activity, and total phenolic contents was carried out. Significant protein and lysine contents were found in the range of 13 24.5% and 4.4 7.4%, respectively. The DPPH free radical assay revealed very high antioxidants capacity of 67.8 97.8% with significant variation in the selected common bean germplasm. Total phenolic contents were determined using Folin-Ciocalteu reagent method and ranged from 68.9 to 110.3 mg GAE/100 g. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) revealed significant variation, based on hierarchical clustering, within germplasm in all studied attributes. Two main factors were elucidated which imparted 67.36% variation based on PCA. Lysine gene was identified, and its presence was confirmed through primer’s amplification. E20 and E34 were found comparatively more nutritious based on biochemical characterisation. The present work will help in selection of high nutrient ecotypes for further substantial research including breeding of nutritionally promising ecotypes for farming community of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.