Analysis of Agromorphological Characteristics, Nutritional Values and Phytochemical Constituents of Two Fonio Species in Gombe State, Nigeria towards the Enhancement of Afghanistan National Food Security

Shu’aibu Isa; Aishatu Adamu  Mohammed; Zainab Adamu Abubakar; Safiullah Jauhar

doi:10.62810/jnsr.v2iSpecial.Issue.120

Authors

Shu’aibu Isa Agriculture, Nigeria University
Aishatu Adamu Mohammed Plant Physiology Unit, Department of Botany, Gombe State University, P.M.B, Gombe, Gombe State, Nigeria
Zainab Adamu Abubakar Department of Botany, Gombe State University, P.M.B, Gombe, Gombe State, Nigeria
Safiullah Jauhar Kabul University, Department of Food Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, Afghanistan

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.62810/jnsr.v2iSpecial.Issue.120

Keywords:

Afghanistan, Agriculture, Food, Self-sufficiency

Abstract

Fonio is a traditional African cereal grain that is poorly studied, as revealed in the literature. It has the potential to contribute significantly to whole grain diets, wellness, economic status improvement, and play an important role in food security in developing economies. A comprehensive study compared the agromorphological characteristics and nutritional values of Digitaria exilis and Digitaria iburua (black and white fonio, respectively), both of West African origin. The parameters measured for morphological and physiological screening included the number of leaves, leaf area, number of tillers, number of spikes, spike length, number of seeds per spikelet, days to flowering, and thousand-seed weight. Nutritional values were determined, such as crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber, carbohydrate, moisture, and ash content. Minerals, including sodium and potassium, were measured using flame photometry, while zinc, iron, and calcium were determined using atomic absorption spectrometry. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were carried out to assess the presence and quantities of bioactive compounds in the grains using methanol as the solvent for extraction. The results revealed that black fonio had the highest number of leaves (19), a shorter lifecycle (56 days to flowering), and a higher number of seeds with greater weight (0.84g). They were found to be more nutritious than white fonio in terms of proximate composition: moisture (3.81%), ash (1.69%), crude protein (12.3%), ether extract (2.81%), crude fiber (1.37%), carbohydrate (77.97%), and mineral composition. Additionally, black fonio contains many bioactive compounds, including flavonoids, tannins, steroids, and glycosides in all plant parts. At the same time, alkaloids and anthraquinones were present only in its roots. Black fonio (Digitaria iburua) is, therefore, suggested as a viable candidate for breeding programs aimed at crop and yield improvement and.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Abrouk, M., Ahmed, H. I., Cubry, P., Šimoníková, D., Cauet, S., Pailles, Y., & Krattinger, S. G. (2020). Fonio millet genome unlocks African orphan crop diversity for agriculture in a changing climate. Nature Communications, 11(1), 1-13. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-18329-4

Addai, I. K., Bisuki, B. K., & Bawa, A. (2022). Evaluation of Fonio (Digitaria exilis) Varieties DOI: https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/4194746

for Improved Agronomic Traits in the Guinea and Sudan Savannah Agroecological Zones of Ghana. Advances in Agriculture.

Adoukonou-Sagbadja, H.; Dansi, A.; Vodouhè, R.; Akpagana, K. ( 2006) Indigenous knowledge

and traditional conservation of fonio millet (Digitaria exilis, Digitaria iburua) in Togo. Biodiversity Conservation, 15, 2379–2395. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-004-2938-3

Andrieu, N.; Vall, E.; Blanchard, M.; Béavogui, F.; Sogodogo, D. (2015). Fonio : a climate smart crop?. Agriculture, Environment and Society, 5 (1): 101-105.

Animasaun, D.A., Morakinyo J.A., Mustapha, O.T., (2014). Assessment of the effect of gamma radiation on the growth and yield of Digitaria exilis (Hailer) Journal of Applied Biosciences 75: 6164-6172. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4314/jab.v75i1.1

AOAC (2010). Official methods of analysis, 18th edition. Association of Official Analytical Chemists, Washington, D.C.

Ayenan, M.A.T.; Sodedji, K.A.F.; Nwankwo, C.I.; Olodo, K.F.; Alladassi, M.E.B. (2017) Harnessing genetic resources and progress in plant genomics for fonio (Digitaria spp.) improvement. Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution, 65, 373–386. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10722-017-0565-6

Ballogou, V. Y.; Soumanou, M. M.; Toukourou F.; Hounhouigan, J. D.,(2013). Structure and nutritional composition of fonio (Digitaria exilis) grains: a review. International Research Journal of Biological Sciences, 2 (1): 73-79.

Balogun, I., & Olatidoye, O. (2012). Chemical composition and nutritional evaluation of Velvet bean seeds (mucuma utilisis) for domestic consumption and industrial utilization in Nigeria. Pakistan Journal of Nutrition, 11, 116-22. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3923/pjn.2012.116.122

Belitz, H., Grosch, W., & Schieberle, P. (2009). Cereals and cereals products. Food Chemistry (Vol. 4th). Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg: Springer, 670-745.

Cheesebrough, M. (2006). Medical Laboratory Manual for Tropical Countries (Vol. 1). Cambridge University Press. Pp. 62.

Clottey, V.; Agyare, W.; Bayorbor, T.; Abanga, J.; Kombiok, J. (2006,) Genetic relatedness of fonio (Digitaria spp.) landraces assembled in Ghana. Plant Genetic Resources Newsletter (Bioversity International, FAO) 147, 6–11.

Cruz, J. F., & Béavogui, F. (2016). Fonio, an African cereal. CIRAD.

Cruz, J.; Beavogui, F.; Dramé, D. (2011). Fonio, an African Cereal [Le Fonio, une Céréale Africaine]; CTA: Wageningen, The Netherlands.

Dachi, S. N.; Mamza, W. S.; Bakare, S. O, (2017). Growth and yield of acha (Digitaria exilis Kippis Stapf) as influenced by sowing methods and nitrogen rates in the Guinea savanna area of Nigeria. FULafia Journal of Science and Technology. 3 (2): 33-37.

Dansi, A.; Adoukonou-Sagbadja, H.; Vodouhè, R. (2010). Diversity, conservation and related wild species of Fonio millet (Digitaria spp.) in the northwest of Benin. Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution. 57, 827–839. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10722-009-9522-3

Dobrescu, A., Valerio Giuffrida, M., & Tsaftaris, S. A. (2017). Leveraging multiple datasets for deep leaf counting. In Proceedings of the IEEE international conference on computer vision workshops (pp. 2072-2079). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/ICCVW.2017.243

Ebere, U., & Godswill, A. C. (2016). Effect of some processing methods on hemagglutinin activity of lectin extracts from selected grains (cereals and legumes). J. Adv. Acad. Res, 2, 24-59.

Enyiukwu, D. N., Chukwu, L. A., & Bassey, I. N. (2020). Nutrient and anti-nutrient compositions of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) and mung bean (Vigna radiata) seeds grown in humid Southeast Nigeria: A comparison. International Journal of Tropical Drylands, 4(2). 41-45. DOI: https://doi.org/10.13057/tropdrylands/t040202

Garí, J.A. (2002). Review of the African millet diversity. In International Workshop on Fonio, Food Security and Livelihood among the Rural Poor in West Africa; IPGRIFAD: Bamako, Mali. Pp. 1-9.

Hammad, G., Kashif, M. and Munawar, M. (2013) “Genetic analysis of quantitative yield related traits in spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.),” American-Eurasian Journal of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences, vol. 13, pp. 1239–1245.

Hendrix, M. (2009). Protein. Microsoft Encarta . (W. Redmond, Ed.).

Ibrahim Bio Yerima, A. R., Achigan-Dako, E. G., Aissata, M., Sekloka, E., Billot, C., Adje, C. O., & Bakasso, Y. (2020). Agromorphological Characterization Revealed Three Phenotypic Groups in a Region-Wide Germplasm of Fonio (Digitaria exilis (Kippist) Stapf) from West Africa. Agronomy, 10(11), 1653. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10111653

Jideani, I.A. and Jideani, V.A., 2011. Developments on the cereal grains: Digitaria exilis (acha) and Digitaria iburua (iburu). Journal of Food Science and Technology. 48 (3), 251–259. doi:10.1007/s13197-010-0208-9, Published online. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-010-0208-9

Jideani, I. A. (2012). Digitaria exilis (acha/fonio), Digitaria iburua (iburu/fonio) and Eluesine coracana (tamba/finger millet) Non-conventional cereal grains with potentials. Scientific Research and Essays, 7(45), 3834-3843.

Laheri, Z., & Soon, J. M. (2018). Awareness of alternative gluten-free grains for individuals with coeliac disease. British Food Journal, 120(12), 2793-2803. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/BFJ-05-2018-0329

Mbosso, C., Boulay, B., Padulosi, S., Meldrum, G., Mohamadou, Y., Berthe Niang, A., & Sidibé, A. (2020). Fonio and bambara groundnut value chains in mali: issues, needs, and opportunities for their sustainable promotion. Sustainability, 12(11), 4766. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su12114766

Nascimento, W. F. D., Silva, E. F. D., & Veasey, E. A. (2011). Agro-morphological characterization of upland rice accessions. Scientia Agricola, 68, 652-660. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0103-90162011000600008

National Research Council, (1996). Lost Crops of Africa: Volume I: Grains. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/2305. DOI: https://doi.org/10.17226/2305

Nura, S., Adamu, A. K., Adelanwa, M. A., Usman, I. S., & Shehu, K. (2017). Colchicine-induced mutagenesis for improved growth and yield of fonio (Digitaria exilis [Kippist] Stapf.). Bayero Journal of Pure and Applied Sciences, 10(2), 126-133. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4314/bajopas.v10i2.22

Nyam, D.; Kwon-Ndung, E.; Wuyep, A. (2017), Genetic affinity and breeding potential of phenologic traits of acha (fonio) in Nigeria. Journal of Scientific and Engineering Research. 4, 91–101.

Onwuka, G. I. (2005). Food analysis and instrumentation theory and practice. Naphthdi prints Lagos Nigeria. pp. 160.

Pucher, A., Sy, O., Angarawai, I. I., Gondah, J., Zangre, R., Ouedraogo, M., ... & Haussmann, B. I. (2015). Agro‐morphological characterization of West and Central African pearl millet accessions. Crop Science, 55(2), 737-748. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2135/cropsci2014.06.0450

Sadiq, I. Z., Maiwada, S. A., Dauda, D., Jamilu, Y. M., & Madungurum, M. A. (2015). Comparative nutritional analysis of black fonio (Digitaria iburua) and white fonio (Digitaria exili). International Research Journal of Biological Sciences, 4(6), 4-9.

Saidou, S.I.; Bakasso, Y.; Inoussa, M.M.; Zaman-Allah, M.; Atta, S.; Barnaud, A.; Billot, C.; Saadou, M. (2014). Diversité agro-morphologique des accessions de fonio [Digitaria exilis (Kippist.) Stapf.] au Niger. Journal of Agricultural Food and Chemistry, 8, 1710. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4314/ijbcs.v8i4.31

Sekloka, E.; Adoukonou-Sagbadja, H.; Paraïso Armand, A.; Yoa Brigitte, K.; Bachabi, F.-X.; Zoumarou-Wallis, N. (2015), Evolution de la diversité des cultivars de fonio pratiqués dans la commune de Boukoumbé au Nord-Ouest du Bénin. Journal of Agricultural Food and Chemistry. 9, 2446–2458. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4314/ijbcs.v9i5.16

Sekloka, E.; Kanlindogbe, C.; Biaou Samadori, S.H.; Adoukonou-Sagbadja, H.; Kora, A.; Motouama, F.T.; Seidou, M.; Zinsou Valérien, A.; Afouda, L.; Baba-Moussa, L. (2016). Agro-morphological characterization of fonio millet accessions (Digitaria exilis Stapf.) collected from Boukoumb, Northwest of Benin. Journal of Plant Breeding and Crop Science. 8, 211–222.

Sofowora, A. (1996). Research on medicinal plants and traditional medicine in Africa. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 2(3), 365-372. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1089/acm.1996.2.365

Telfer, A., Bollman, K. M., & Poethig, R. S. (1997). Phase change and the regulation of trichome distribution in Arabidopsis thaliana. Development, 124(3), 645-654. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1242/dev.124.3.645

Usunubon, U., Okolie, N., Anyanmu, O., Adegbegi, A., & Eghareva, M. (2015). Phytochmeical Screening and Proximate Composition of Annona muricata Leaves. European Journal of Botany, Plaint Science and Phytology, 2 (1), 18-28.

Walter, A., & Schurr, U. (1999). The modular character of growth in Nicotiana tabacum plants under steady-state nutrition. Journal of Experimental Botany, 50(336), 1169-1177. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/50.336.1169

Zhu, F. (2020). Fonio grains: Physicochemical properties, nutritional potential, and food applications. Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, 19(6), 3365-3389. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1541-4337.12608