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Root tuber of Tacca leontopetaloides L. (kunze) for food and nutritional security

Ogbonna AI, Adepoju SO, Ogbonna CIC, Yakubu T, Itelima JU, Dajin VY

Tacca leontopetaloides L. (Kunze) is a wild perennial herbaceous and underutilized tuber crop. This study was aimed at analyzing quantitatively the tuber starch of T. leontopetaloides L. (Kunze) collected in the wild from Angwan Zam and Ntuer in Shendam Local Government Area (L.G.A) of Plateau State Nigeria for the presence of nutritional and anti-nutritional components. The proximate composition, elemental analyses and phytochemical composition of the tuber starch carried out revealed the presence of moisture, 8.66%, crude protein, 6.79%, crude fibre, 5.44%, crude fat, 0.51%, ash, 0.41%, and NFE (total carbohydrate), 78.19%. The elemental analysis of T. leontopetaloides indicated presence of some trace elements including sodium, 34.71 mg/100 g, potassium, 40.18 mg/100 g, calcium, 0.25 mg/100 g, magnesium, 1.40 mg/100 g, iron, 1.37 mg/100 g, zinc, 1.64 mg/100 g, manganese, 0.72 mg/100 g, copper, 0.68 mg/100 g and phosphorus, 0.06 mg/100 g. The results of antinutrient composition of T. leontopetaloides revealed the presence of tannins, 2.50 mg/100 g, Phytate, 49.77 mg/100 g, oxalate, 15.51 mg/100 g, cyanide, 0.18 mg/100 g, alkaloids, 42.90 mg/100 g, saponins, 14.67 mg/100 g and flavonoids, 1.46 m g/100 g. It was observed that steeping in water for sometimes had effects on the concentration of the anti-nutritional components. This in effect presents the tuber crop a good candidate as food source for humans in a developing country like Nigeria.