Chemical Composition and Protein Quality of the Little-Known Legume, Velvet Bean ( Mucuna pruriens (L.) DC.)

The chemical composition and nutritional characteristics of seeds of Mucuna pruriens were investigated. The mature seeds contained 314.4 g/kg crude protein, 51.6 g/kg crude fiber, 67.3 g/kg crude fat, 41.1 g/kg ash, and 525.6 g/kg carbohydrates. Potassium, phosphorus, and calcium registered higher concentrations compared with the most commonly consumed pulses. The globulins and albumins together constituted the major storage proteins (22.7 g/100 g of seed flour). The essential amino acids profile of total seed proteins compared favorably with the FAO/WHO reference pattern except for deficiency of sulfo amino acids. When compared with globulins, albumins appeared to be a rich source of valine and tryptophan. However, cystine, methionine, and leucine were deficient in both the protein fractions. Both oleic and linoleic acids constituted the predominant fatty acids (65.5%) along with a substantial quantity of palmitic acid (20.16%). Dry heating as well as autoclaving significantly reduced the antinutritional factors. Protein effeciency ratio, true protein digestibility, biological value, net protein utilization, and utilizable protein were significantly improved by autoclaving as compared with dry heating. However, the values of true protein digestibility and net protein utilization of dry-heated samples were significantly higher than the raw samples. Keywords: Mucuna pruriens; chemical composition; amino acids; fatty acids; antrinutritional factors; heat treatments; biological evaluation