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Background: Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), a critical diploid legume in the Fabaceae family, is a rich source of protein, vitamins, and minerals. However, heavy metal toxicity severely affects its growth, yield, and quality. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play a crucial role in regulating plant responses to both abiotic and biotic stress, including heavy metal exposure, by suppressing the expression of target genes. Plants respond to heavy metal stress through miRNA-mediated regulatory mechanisms at multiple physiological, biochemical, and molecular levels. Although the Fabaceae family is well represented in miRNA studies, chickpeas have been notably underrepresented. This study aimed to investigate the effects of heavy metal-induced stress, particularly from 100 µM concentrations of cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), and 30 µM arsenic (As), on two chickpea varieties: ILC 482 (sensitive) and Azkan (tolerant). The assessment focused on physiological, biochemical, and molecular parameters. Furthermore, a systematic characterization of the miR172 gene family in the chickpea genome was conducted to better understand the plant's molecular response to heavy metal stress. Results: Variance analysis indicated significant effects of genotype (G), treatment (T), and genotype-by-treatment (GxT) interactions on plant growth, physiological, and biochemical parameters. Heavy metal stress negatively impacted plant growth in chickpea genotypes ILC 482 and Azkan. A reduction in chlorophyll content and relative leaf water content was observed, along with increased cell membrane damage. In ILC 482, the highest hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) levels in shoot tissue were recorded under As, Cd, and Ni treatments, while in Azkan, peak levels were observed with Pb treatment. Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in root tissue were highest in ILC 482 under Cd and Ni exposure and in Azkan under As, Cr, and Cd treatments. Antioxidant enzyme activities, including superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POD), and ascorbate peroxidase (APX), were significantly elevated under heavy metal stress in both genotypes. Gene expression analysis revealed upregulation of essential antioxidant enzyme genes, such as SOD, CAT, and APX, with APX showing notable increases in both shoot and root tissues compared to the control. Additionally, seven miR172 genes (miR172a, miR172b, miR172c, miR172d, miR172e, miR172f, and miR172g) were identified in the chickpea genome, distributed across five chromosomes. All genes exhibited conserved hairpin structures essential for miRNA functionality. Phylogenetic analysis grouped these miR172 genes into three clades, suggesting strong evolutionary conservation with other plant species. The expression analysis of miR172 and its target genes under heavy metal stress showed varied expression patterns, indicating their role in enhancing heavy metal tolerance in chickpea. Conclusions: Heavy metal stress significantly impaired plant growth and physiological and biochemical parameters in chickpea genotypes, except for cell membrane damage. The findings underscore the critical role of miR172 and its target genes in modulating chickpea's response to heavy metal stress. These insights provide a foundational understanding for developing stress-tolerant chickpea varieties through miRNA-based genetic engineering approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates non-rhizobial endophytic bacteria in the root nodules of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L), faba bean (Vicia faba), and cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp), as well as arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in the rhizospheric soil of chickpea and faba bean. Out of the 34 endophytic bacterial populations examined, 31 strains were identified as non-rhizobial based on nodulation tests. All strains were assessed for their plant growth-promoting (PGP) activities in vitro. The results revealed that most isolates exhibited multiple PGP activities, such as nitrogen fixation, indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and ammonia (NH3) production, phosphate solubilization, and exopolysaccharide production. The most effective PGP bacteria were selected for 16S rRNA analysis. Additionally, a total of 36 species of native arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) were identified. Acaulospora (100%) and Scutellospora (91.66%) were the most prevalent genera in Cicer arietinum L. and Vicia faba L. plants, respectively. Acaulospora also exhibited the highest spore density and relative abundance in both plants. Moreover, the root colonization of Cicer arietinum L. and Vicia faba L. plants by hyphae, vesicles, and arbuscules (HVA) was significant. The findings of this study provide valuable insights into non-rhizobial endophytic bacteria associated with legume root nodules and the diversity of AMF. These organisms have great potential for PGP and can be manipulated by co-inoculation with rhizobia to enhance their biofertilizer effectiveness. This manipulation is crucial for promoting sustainable agriculture, improving crop growth, and advancing biofertilizer technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND RESULTS CONCLUSION Ready‐to‐eat snacks are very popular. However, they have a high glycemic index and lack proteins & micronutrients. This study prepared protein‐enriched corn extrudates by adding chickpea grit supplements at varying concentrations (0–100 g kg−1).The protein contents of 100 g kg−1 supplemented extrudates increased by 66.66% and dietary fiber contents increased by 48.02% in comparison with the control. Bulk density increased by 1.46 times. However, the expansion ratio, porosity, and water absorption index decreased significantly (P < 0.05). The health‐promoting characteristics of the extrudates increased in comparison with the control sample, i.e., total phenolic content increasing by 17.84%, 2,2‐diphenyl‐1‐picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH) contents by 11.38%, and 2,2‐azinobis‐3‐ethylbenzothiazoline‐6‐sulfonic acid (ABTS) content by 9.59%. Likewise, the potassium contents increased by 24.63% with the inclusion of 10% chickpea in corn extrudates. Sensory evaluation revealed that corn extrudates with up to 60 g kg−1 added chickpea achieved the highest acceptability among panelists.The addition of chickpea produced corn extrudates with higher protein and mineral content, which could mitigate malnutrition. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The growing global population has increased the protein needs and the combination of animal with plant proteins can be an effective strategy to meet future protein demand. This study aimed to investigate the impact of pH between 6.2 and 7.0 on the thermal stability of a 1:1 mixture of chickpea protein concentrate (CPC) and whey protein isolate (WPI), and their respective control. After heat treatment, CPC:WPI mixture showed an increase in viscosity (from 20.5 mPa.s at pH 7.0 to 110.8 mPa.s at pH 6.2, respectively), and particle size (from 5.7 to 56.5 μm at pH 7.0 and 6.2, respectively). The physical stability of the heat‐treated CPC:WPI mixture decreased, as the sediment increased from 3.3 mm at pH 7.0 to 7.8 mm at pH 6.2. This study highlighted the enhanced thermal stability of CPC:WPI at pHs closer to neutrality and offers valuable insights for the formulation of innovative plant protein‐enriched food. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The Cosmos sulphureus Cav. plant is studied for its high polyphenolic content with antioxidant properties. Its flowers, rich in phenolic acids, flavonoids, and tannins, hold promise as antioxidants in food preservation. The inclusion of these compounds in chickpea‐based coatings with a previously studied preservative effect would be an excellent option as a food preservation method and microencapsulation addresses challenges like dispersion and degradation of polyphenols in the coating. The objective of this research was to evaluate the in vitro antioxidant activity of Cosmos sulphureus leaves, seed, and flower extracts and explore the protective effects of chickpea‐based coatings containing microcapsules of flower polyphenolic extract on the chemical quality of stored roasted sunflower seeds during storage. RESULTS: The ethanolic leaf extract exhibited the highest antiradical activity, followed by the aqueous flower extract. After a storage period of 15 days, at 40 °C, the chickpea‐based coatings effectively delayed lipid oxidation in the roasted sunflowers seeds, and the inclusion of polyphenolic microcapsules with 0.01% extract (SMC 0.01%) in the coating significantly improved the protective effect. By day 15 of storage, SMC 0.01% showed comparable peroxide value, conjugated dienes, and linoleic acid content to samples containing the synthetic antioxidant BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene). Samples that only contained chickpea‐based coating and coating with polyphenolic microcapsules with 0.005% extract exhibited significantly greater reduction in fatty acid content compared to the 0.01% SMC treatment. Conclusion: The chickpea‐based coating with polyphenolic microcapsules demonstrated antioxidant activity akin to synthetic BHT, offering a promising biopackaging solution for lipid‐rich foods like roasted sunflower seeds. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea is a field crop that is playing an emerging role in the provision of healthy and sustainable plant‐based value‐added ingredients for the food and nutraceutical industries. This article reviews the characteristics of chickpea (composition, health properties, and techno‐functionality) and chickpea grain that influence their use as whole foods or ingredients in formulated food. It covers the exploitation of traditional and emerging processes for the conversion of chickpea into value‐added differentiated food ingredients. The influence of processing on the composition, health‐promoting properties, and techno‐functionality of chickpea is discussed. Opportunities to tailor chickpea ingredients to facilitate their incorporation in traditional food applications and in the expanding plant‐based meat alternative and dairy alternative markets are highlighted. The review includes an assessment of the possible uses of by‐products of chickpea processing. Recommendations are provided for future research to build a sustainable industry using chickpea as a value‐added ingredient. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analyzed the diversity of major yield traits and nutritional components across 122 chickpea breeding lines, cultivars, and landraces of different origins. All parameters showed significant variations, with a variance ranging from 4.61% in days to maturity (DM) to 43.04% in oleic acid. Six accessions, including CP021, CP022, CP026, CP037, CP066, and CP109, outperformed in yield traits and nutritional value. Origin significantly affected all phenotypic traits except total fatty acid contents, with Indian and Ukrainian accessions demonstrating contrasting performances. Most traits, except for the number of seeds per pod (SPP), palmitic acid, and total fatty acid contents, differed significantly among breeding lines, cultivars, and landraces. Breeding lines were the earliest to flower and to mature with average days to flowering (DF) of 50.23 days and DM of 101.50 days. They also had the highest average SPP, number of pods per plant (PPP), total seeds per plant (TSPP), total protein, crude fiber, dietary fiber, linoleic acid, and linolenic acid contents making them preferable for high yield and nutrition. Hierarchical cluster analysis classified the chickpea accessions into seven clusters, showing significant variations in yield traits and nutritional components. Principal component and Pearson's correlation analyses indicated positive correlations between DM and DF, and between SPP, PPP, and TSPP. Nutritional components also displayed varying associations, with a notable negative correlation between oleic and linoleic acids, the two essential fatty acids. Overall, this study showed the diversity of key phenotypic traits in chickpea breeding lines, cultivars, and landraces of different origins. The significant effects of genotype and origin differences on these traits could be used as a basis for future metabolomics and genomics research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The imperative need to produce safe foodstuffs using environmentally sustainable practices has highlighted the incorporation of legumes in human and animal diets as an emerging nutritional staple. Since legumes comprise a family of plants known to display an extensive agricultural diversity with significant bioactivities, we report herein the exploitation outcome of the nutritional and bio-functional content of hay, derived from the post-harvest aerial parts of eight novel-improved Greek cultivars belonging to the following six taxa: Larthyrus sativus L., Medicago sativa L., Cicer arietinum L., Pisum sativum L., Vicia faba L., and Phaseolus vulgaris L. In specific, the phytochemical content of their hay extracts was screened against the presence of 37 fatty acids and 67 polyphenols using, respectively, GC-FID and LC-MS/MS instruments, while the determination of their total phenolic and tannin contents was achieved with spectrophotometric methods. In this respect, the presence of 26 different fatty acids was detected of which the acids linoleic, linolenic and palmitic were traced in all extracts in concentrations exceeding the 10 mg/g, while the oleic acid was determined as the major component of C. arietinum (77.58 mg/g), V. faba (36.11 mg/g), and L. sativus (12.89 mg/g) extracts. In addition, 30 different phenolics were traced as extracts' components with the most abundant the molecule of isoquercetin, which was present in six extracts and isoliquiritigenin, calycosin, and chlorogenic acid which were detected in five extracts. Finally, the antioxidant properties of the extracts were evaluated by performing both DPPH• and FRAP assays, which highlighted the V. faba extract as the most potent in both tests, followed by the extracts of P. sativum and P. vulgaris. Results herein are indicative of the significant advances achieved, for the improvement of investigated plant cultivars with respect to their utilization as nutritional crops, since these novel cultivars hays have been found to contain significant amounts of essential nutrients in the form of fatty acids along with bioactive ingredients in the form of polyphenols, while simultaneously they were determined as deprived of tannins that constitute essential anti-nutritional factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agriculture is a key component of Telangana's economy, and greater performance in this sector is crucial for inclusive growth. A central challenge is yielding estimation to predict crop yields before harvesting. This paper addresses this challenge with machine learning approaches includes Naive Bayes, KNN and Random Forest. The parameters considered for model testing are crop, season, rainfall and location. This paper includes a case study of Telangana with the help of Telangana weather data set to provide analysis on the key factors like overall rainfall recorded with respect to each Mandal, overall seasonal yield in selected years, seasonal yield of major crops like Bengal gram, groundnut and maize, and overall yield in two different agricultural seasons: rabi and kharif. Random forest machine learning model produces highest accuracy of 99.32% when compared with other process models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This comprehensive review delves into the untapped potential of underutilized legumes in India, offering a deep exploration of their nutritional composition, health benefits, culinary versatility, and functional attributes. Specifically, we examine kidney beans, fava beans, horse gram, and chickpeas, shedding light on their abundant protein content, dietary fiber, vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals that contribute to human well-being and the prevention of various diseases. The review doesn't shy away from discussing the impact of anti-nutritional factors (ANFs) on legume nutritional quality, while also proposing various culinary techniques such as cooking, roasting, and sprouting as effective strategies to mitigate these effects. Moreover, this review underscores the pivotal role that lesser-known legumes can play in addressing malnutrition, bolstering food security, and advancing sustainable agriculture. It outlines strategies aimed at raising awareness, encouraging further research, promoting cultivation, and facilitating market integration, with a strong emphasis on incorporating these legumes into diversified diets and resilient farming systems. Recognizing the cultural and agricultural significance of underutilized legumes in India, this review provides insights into their historical importance and versatile applications. A case study is presented, featuring chickpeas, fava beans, red kidney beans, and horse gram, highlighting their exceptional nutritional value and addressing the challenges posed by ANFs, which can impede nutrient absorption and digestion. The review further delves into strategies to overcome these challenges, encompassing various processing techniques and genetic modifications. It also thoroughly examines several treatments and their effects on specific ANFs, offering a comprehensive perspective on how to harness the full potential of these underutilized legumes for enhanced nutrition, food security, and sustainable agriculture in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the importance of grains and legumes in the human diet, little is known regarding peptide release and the temporal changes of protease activities during seed germination. LC/MS-MS peptidomic analysis of two cultivars of germinating chickpea followed by computational analyses indicated cleavage dominated by proteases with a single position preference (mainly before (P1) or after cleavage (P1'): L at P2 (cysEP-like); R or K at P1 (vignain-like), N or Q at P1 (legumain-like); and previously unidentified K, R, A and S at P1'; A at P2'). While P1 N cleavages were relatively constant, P1' K/R preferences were high in soaked garbanzo (kabuli) seeds, declined by four days, and returned at six days, but were much rarer in the brown (desi) cultivar. Late Embryogenesis Associated (LEA) peptides were markedly released during early germination. Vicilin peptides rich in glutamic acid near their N-termini markedly increased with germination, consistent with strong proteolytic resistance, even to human digestion, as indicated by analyses of separate datasets. Thus, this first peptidomics study of seed germination proteolytic profiles unveils a complex cultivar-specific programme of sequential activation and inactivation of a series of proteases, associated with the differential release of peptides from different protein groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fusion transcripts (FTs) are well known cancer biomarkers, relatively understudied in plants. Here, we developed PFusionDB (www.nipgr.ac.in/PFusionDB), a novel plant-specific fusion-transcript database. It is a comprehensive repository of 80,170, 39,108, 83,330, and 11,500 unique fusions detected in 1280, 637, 697, and 181 RNA-Seq samples of Arabidopsis thaliana, Oryza sativa japonica, Oryza sativa indica, and Cicer arietinum respectively. Here, a total of 76,599 (Arabidopsis thaliana), 35,480 (Oryza sativa japonica), 72,099 (Oryza sativa indica), and 9524 (Cicer arietinum) fusion transcripts are non-recurrent i.e., only found in one sample. Identification of FTs was performed by using a total of five tools viz. EricScript-Plants, STAR-Fusion, TrinityFusion, SQUID, and MapSplice. At PFusionDB, available fundamental details of fusion events includes the information of parental genes, junction sequence, expression levels of fusion transcripts, breakpoint coordinates, strand information, tissue type, treatment information, fusion type, PFusionDB ID, and Sequence Read Archive (SRA) ID. Further, two search modules: 'Simple Search' and 'Advanced Search', along with a 'Browse' option to data download, are present for the ease of users. Three distinct modules viz. 'BLASTN', 'SW Align', and 'Mapping' are also available for efficient query sequence mapping and alignment to FTs. PFusionDB serves as a crucial resource for delving into the intricate world of fusion transcript in plants, providing researchers with a foundation for further exploration and analysis. Database URL: www.nipgr.ac.in/PFusionDB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractChickpea wilt, caused by a complex of soilborne fungi (Fusarium spp. Macrophomina phaseolina, Rhizoctonia solani, Sclerotium rolfsii, and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum), is the most important disease of chickpeas (Cicer arietinum) in Mexico. The aims of this study were to characterize Trichoderma isolates using a combination of phenotypic and molecular approaches and to evaluate their antagonistic activity against soilborne fungi associated with chickpea wilt. A total of 30 Trichoderma isolates were obtained from rhizospheric soil samples collected from chickpea fields in different locations of Sinaloa, Mexico. Dual confrontation assays showed the potential antagonistic effect of Trichoderma isolates against F. languescens, M. phaseolina, R. solani, S. rolfsii, and S. sclerotiorum. Five Trichoderma isolates (FAVF335, FAVF340, FAVF345, FAVF349, and FAVF351) exhibited mycelial growth inhibition of the five pathogens that ranged from 56 to 71%. These isolates were characterized using cultural, morphological, and molecular studies and tested in vivo for their ability to control soilborne pathogens in two chickpea cultivars (Blanco Sinaloa-92 and P2245) under greenhouse conditions. Phylogenetic analysis based on a combined ITS, EF-1α, and rpb2 sequence dataset identified T. afroharzianum (FAVF345, FAVF349, and FAVF351) and T. longibrachiatum (FAVF335 and FAVF340). Coating of chickpea seeds with T. longibrachiatum (FAVF335 and FAVF340) significantly reduced the disease severity and improved the plant growth-promoting attributes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is well-known for having climate resilience and atmospheric nitrogen fixation ability. Global demand for nitrogenous fertilizer is predicted to increase by 1.4% annually, and the loss of billions of dollars in farm profit has drawn attention to the need for alternative sources of nitrogen. The ability of chickpea to obtain sufficient nitrogen via its symbiotic relationship with Mesorhizobium ciceri is of critical importance in determining the growth and production of chickpea. Methods: To support findings on nodule formation in chickpea and to map the genomic regions for nodulation, an association panel consisting of 271 genotypes, selected from the global chickpea germplasm including four checks at four locations, was evaluated, and data were recorded for nodulation and 12 yield-related traits. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) was conducted using phenotypic data and genotypic data was extracted from whole-genome resequencing data of chickpea by creating a hap map file consisting of 602,344 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the working set with best-fit models of association mapping. Results and Discussion: The GWAS panel was found to be structured with sufficient diversity among the genotypes. Linkage disequilibrium (LD) analysis showed an LD decay value of 37.3 MB, indicating that SNPs within this distance behave as inheritance blocks. A total of 450 and 632 stringent marker-trait associations (MTAs) were identified from the BLINK and FarmCPU models, respectively, for all the traits under study. The 75 novel MTAs identified for nodulation traits were found to be stable. SNP annotations of associated markers were found to be related to various genes including a few auxins encoding as well as nod factor transporter genes. The identified significant MTAs, candidate genes, and associated markers have the potential for use in marker-assisted selection for developing high-nodulation cultivars after validation in the breeding populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Soil pollution by petroleum hydrocarbons (PHCs) reduces yield by changing the physico-chemical properties of soil and plants due to PHCs' biotoxicity and persistence. Thus, removing PHCs from the soil is crucial for ecological sustainability. Microbes-assisted phytoremediation is an economical and eco-friendly solution. The current work aimed to develop and use bacterial consortia (BC) for PHCs degradation and plant growth enhancement in hydrocarbon-contaminated soil. Initially, the enriched microbial cultures (that were prepared from PHCs-contaminated soils from five distinct regions) were obtained via screening through microcosm experiments. Afterward, two best microbial cultures were tested for PHCs degradation under various temperature and pH ranges. After culture optimization, isolation and characterization of bacterial strains were done to construct two BC. These constructed BC were tested in a pot experiment for hydrocarbons degradation and chickpea growth in PHCs contaminated soil. Results: Findings revealed that PHCs exerted significant phytotoxic effects on chickpea growth and physiology when cultivated in PHCs contaminated soil, reducing agronomic and physiological traits by 13–29% and 12–43%, respectively. However, in the presence of BC, the phytotoxic impacts of PHCs on chickpea plants were reduced, resulting in up to 24 − 35% improvement in agronomic and physiological characteristics as compared to un-inoculated contaminated controls. Furthermore, the bacterial consortia boosted chickpea's nutritional absorption and antioxidant mechanism. Most importantly, chickpea plants phytoremediated 52% of the initial PHCs concentration; however, adding BC1 and BC2 with chickpea plants further increased this removal and remediated 74% and 80% of the initial PHCs concentration, respectively. Conclusion: In general, BC2 outperformed BC1 (with few exceptions) in promoting plant growth and PHCs elimination. Therefore, using multi-trait BC for PHCs degradation and plant growth improvement under PHCs stress may be an efficient and environmentally friendly strategy to deal with PHCs pollution and toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the antagonistic activity of Trichoderma asperellum against chickpea Fusarium wilt through in vitro and in vivo experiments. The dual culture test showed that Trichoderma had a significant inhibitory effect on the growth of the tested Fusarium isolates, with an inhibition rate ranging from 71.33% to 80.66%. The volatile and non-volatile metabolites produced by Trichoderma also showed antagonistic effects, with a growth inhibition rate ranging from 47.33% to 51.33% and a colonization rate ranging from 60% to 67%. In vivo experiments demonstrated that treating chickpea seeds with Trichoderma asperellum 48 h after inoculation with Fusarium significantly enhanced chickpea growth compared to seeds inoculated with Fusarium alone. Arial part length enhancement ranged between 69.3% and 92,19% while root length increased by 61,9% and 127%, this implied a significant improvement in biomass. These findings highlight Trichoderma's potential in controlling chickpea Fusarium wilt and enhancing plant growth, making it an environmentally friendly method in sustainable agriculture and crop protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Expensive phosphatic fertilizers and limited phosphorus (P) availability hamper chickpea production in calcareous soils. Using cheaper P sources could reduce production costs. A field experiment assessed the combined effect of single superphosphate (SSP) and rock phosphate (RP) ratios (RP: SSP; 0:100, 25:75, 50:50, 75:25, and 100:0), phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PSB; with and without), and rhizobium (with and without) on chickpea growth and N and P uptake. RP:SSP ratios of 0:100 and 25:75 yielded higher plant height, growth rate, branch number, N concentration in straw and seeds, crude protein content, and P concentration and uptake in both straw and seeds compared to the 100:0 ratio. PSB application significantly improved chickpea growth, seed and straw N concentration, seed crude protein, and P uptake. Rhizobium-inoculated seeds also enhanced growth, N and P concentration in straw and seed, and P uptake. PSB enhanced rhizobium efficiency by promoting chickpea growth and increasing N and P concentration and uptake through solubilizing low-availability P from RP and SSP. Using RP:SSP (25:75) with PSB and rhizobium is recommended for enhanced chickpea growth and nutrient uptake in calcareous soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plant-based yogurts are becoming more and more popular. These are vegan products for people with food allergies or intolerances, athletes, and ordinary consumers. The use of chickpea "milk" allows one to obtain a plant-based yogurt with a high protein content, dietary fiber and antioxidant potential. This study assessed the content of polyphenols, selected nutrients, and antioxidant properties in chickpea yogurt. The vegetable chickpea yogurt was rich in protein (4.34–7.90 g/100 g) and dietary fiber (2–4%). It was also characterized by a high antioxidant activity (DPPH = 2.61 to 4.32 μmol TE/g, FRAP = 3.11 to 48.33 μmol TE/g). The use of 3-day soaking and inoculation with Vegurt or a kefir bacterial inoculum allowed us to obtain a high protein content. The addition of honey increased the polyphenol content and antioxidant potential of the plant-based yogurt (139–148 GAE mg/100 g). This research will be used in future research into optimizing the conditions for obtaining plant-based yogurts with chickpeas. Further research should include models for testing health-promoting properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low phosphorus use efficiency (PUE) is one of the abiotic factors that hamper yield and production potential in chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.). Higher yield coupled with improved PUE can make this crop more adaptive and competitive to wide cropland area, especially on marginal soils having low-level phosphorus (P). To identify chickpea germplasm lines that assimilate phosphorus more efficiently under P-deficient soils, 288 diverse genotypes of chickpea belonging to reference set were evaluated for yield component traits and PUE under field conditions for two consecutive years at two phosphorus levels (low P – no phosphorus application and high P – phosphorus application at 40 kg/ha). Based on 2-year evaluation of data under high and low P soil conditions, we identified strong correlations for traits like number of primary and secondary branches, number of pods, biological yield and seed yield indicating that these traits can be used as proxy traits for PUE. ICC 6571 was the best performing genotype under low P conditions while ICC 6579 yielded maximum under high P regime. We report 16 genotypes namely ICC 1052, ICC 1083, ICC 1098, ICC 1161, ICC 2072, ICC 4418, ICC 4567, ICC 4991, ICC 5504, ICC 5639, ICC 7413, ICC 8350, ICC 9590, ICC 9702, ICC 11584 and ICC 13357 as phosphorus use efficient genotypes based on their better performance for yield and yield-contributing traits under low P compared to high P conditions. These genotypes can be exploited in future as potential donors for development of phosphorus use efficient chickpea cultivars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The investigation was carried out during rabi season (November-April) of 2020-2021 in the polyhouse, Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara, Punjab, India to assess the performance of chickpea genotypes under salinity stress conditions. The experiment was conducted using a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with three replications under two conditions: saline (pots without holes) and control (pots with holes). Twenty genotypes were collected out of which seventeen from ICRISAT, Hyderabad and three from ARS, SriGanganagar. The salinity stress was created using salts NaCl, which were administered in split doses of 60 mM at the time of sowing and 15 DAS. The study monitored various parameters such as phenological, physiological, morphological, biochemical, and yield parameters to determine the effect of salt stress on genotypes exhibiting different tolerance levels. The results showed that the total proline content increased due to the production of stress-related proteins during salinity stress. However, the yield parameters were reduced under stress conditions, with the highest decrease observed in the 60 mM NaCl treatment group compared to the control group. Based on the results of the study, ICC5439 and GNG 1581 are highly tolerant chickpea genotypes under salinity stress conditions. ICC 6050, ICC 251, ICC 252, and ICC 262 are medium tolerant genotypes, while ICC253, ICC 247, and ICC 249 are highly susceptible genotypes. Remaining are minimum tolerant and sensitive genotypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Drought is the foremost environmental restraint that effects the growth and yield of chickpea. The mechanism of response to drought differs with genotype and growth stages of individual crop species. The activation of antioxidant enzymes is an alternate defensive system against oxidative stress that ultimately decide development of putative drought tolerant mechanism. Methods: Eighty-three chickpea genotypes were grown under normal and drought stress conditions and leaf samples were used to estimate different biochemical parameters including total sugar, lipid peroxidation (MDA), chlorophyll, proline and protein along with estimation of activities of different antioxidant enzymes viz., catalase (CAT) (EC 1.11.1.6), ascorbate peroxidase (APX) (EC 1.11.1.11), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase (POX). Result: Positively significant correlation was found among proline under control with proline underwent stress (r=0.441), MDA under stress with proline under control (r=0.365) and MDA under control (r=0.336) at 1% level of significance. Positively significant correlation was also investigated between SOD under stressed condition with SOD under control (r=0.665), POX (0.449) and APX under stress (0.423), CAT under control (0.471) and CAT under stress condition (0.374) at 1% probability level. Heatmaps along with dendrograms represented expression levels of different antioxidant enzymes activities that showed variations among different genotypes. In conclusion. total sugar, proline and Malondialdehyde, have been increased under drought stressed condition whilst total chlorophyll and protein were decreased. While antioxidant enzymes viz., POX, APX, CAT and SOD levels increased under drought stressed conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chickpea pod borer (CPB), Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner) is a pest of great economic importance in chickpea and it is the major limiting factor in chickpea cultivation. In severe cases it causes about 75 to 90 per cent losses in seed yield, despite the application of insecticides. Therefore, development of a cost effective and an environmentally friendly approach like improvement of cultivars resistant to H. armigera is necessary for management of the pest in chickpea. Methods: Morphological and chemical components of host plant resistance in chickpea germplasm was assessed under field and laboratory conditions against pod borer, Helicoverpa armigera at hotspot Pantnagar, during rabi, 2017-18 using standard protocols. Result: Observations recorded revealed that germplasm ICC4484 recorded highest phenol (4.73 mg/g) and flavonoid (0.19 mg/g) content, whereas the maximum tannin, protein and trypsin content were recorded in ICC6263 (1.33 mg/g), ICC3137 (19.41 g/100 g of seeds) and ICC372351 (31.83 IU/g), respectively. Germplasm with higher phenol, tannin, flavonoid and trypsin inhibitor content recorded minimum per cent pod damage. Phenol, tannin, flavonoid, trypsin content showed negative correlation, while protein content showed positive correlation with the per cent pod damage by H. armigera. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chickpea is one of the most important and nutritionally rich pulse crops widely grown in India. Pulse beetle is a cosmopolitan insect pest that can cause significant losses in stored chickpeas. Host Plant Resistance, one of the most effective methods, being adopted for decades to identify the traits in the host plants that confer resistance against the insect pests. The present study has been undertaken to screen different genotypes of chickpea against pulse beetle and to understand the influence of physico-chemical traits of chickpea genotypes on the population buildup of pulse bruchid. Methods: Twenty chickpea genotypes including thirteen desi and seven kabuli type were screened against pulse beetle through free choice test at Department of Entomology, Agricultural College, Bapatla during 2020-21. Certain physical and biochemical parameters of chickpeas were assessed and the level of their influence on growth and development of pulse bruchid was estimated by correlation and regression analyses. Result: The desi chickpea genotypes viz., NBeG 452, NBeG 1129, ICC 86111, NBeG 49 and NBeG 776 with less oviposition, less number of adults emerged, less grain damage were found relatively with less test weight, total soluble sugars and more seed coat thickness, total phenols and tannins and the kabuli genotypes viz., NBeG 440, NBeG 789 and NBeG 833 with more oviposition, more number of adults emerged, more grain damage were found relatively with more test weight, total soluble sugars and less seed coat thickness, total phenols and tannins. Thus, test weight, total soluble sugars exhibited significant positive correlation with growth and damage parameters of pulse beetle, while the seed coat thickness, total phenols and tannins exhibited significant negative correlation. Despite the fact that the biochemical components of the genotypes of chickpea varied significantly, they had little effect on the development of pulse bruchid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The research focused on investigating the impact of genotype-environment interaction on the yield stability and performance of eight chickpea genotypes across three different locations (Bhatapara, Kawardha and Raipur). Methods: The study employed a randomized block design with two replications in each environment in Rabi season during 2021-22. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed significant variations between environments and genotype-environment interaction (G x E) based on AMMI and GGE biplot. Result: To visualize the genotype-environment relationship, a two-dimensional GGE biplot was created using the first two principal components, which accounted for 87.8% and 11.5% of the interaction's variation. The GGE biplot indicated that genotype g4 (ICCX 161100-B-B-B-B) in environment e2 (Kawardha) and g8 (JG-24) in environment e1 (Bhatapara) exhibited high yield. Genotype g3 (ICCV 201112) in environment e3 (Raipur) also showed high yield, while genotype g5 (JG 2020-10) demonstrated stability across all three environments. Furthermore, the AMMI analysis identified genotype g2 (ICCV 201103) as a superior performer in terms of yield stability across environments. By employing the GGE biplot and AMMI analysis, the study categorized the genotypes into three groups, facilitating simplified visual evaluations. The GGE biplot highlighted that genotype g8 (JG-24) exhibited better seed index in environment e3 (Raipur), while genotype g1 (ICCV 201210) performed well in environment e1 (Bhatapara). Genotype g2 (ICCV 201103) demonstrated a good seed index in all three environments. The AMMI analysis indicated that genotype g3 (ICCV 201112) had a slightly lower seed index but maintained stability across all environments. Overall, the findings of this investigation, as represented by the GGE and AMMI biplots, visually illustrated the relationship between genotypes and environments. The identified genotypes hold potential for improving yield production and further research and breeding efforts can be based on these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Legume crops play a key role in hastening both the agroecological and protein transition and improving the sustainability of cropping systems. Among legumes, chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is a valuable source of protein, fibers, and nutraceutical compounds, providing important agri-environmental effects. Nevertheless, few studies have explored the effect of genetic characteristics on production and quality traits in chickpea. Chickpea landraces seem particularly interesting for their positive agronomic and quality characteristics, opening the door for innovation in sustainable food systems. Thus, the present study aimed to characterize two chickpea Tuscan landraces (Rugoso della Maremma and Cappuccio della Valtiberina) in comparison with widely distributed commercial chickpea varieties (Ares, Maragià, Pascià, Principe, Reale, Sultano, and Vittoria). Our findings highlighted positive agronomic traits of landraces in terms of seed yield and yield components, demonstrating performance that is either superior or comparable to commercial varieties. Notably, Cappuccio della Valtiberina showed the highest 1000-seed weight (425.50 g), followed by Maragià (432.92 g), Principe (392.32 g), and Reale (382.79 g), and the highest harvest index (0.55), similar to Reale (0.55). Overall, landraces achieved 18.75% higher yields than commercial varieties. Regarding chickpea quality, landraces exhibited profiles comparable to those of commercial genotypes in terms of protein and oil content, as well as nutraceuticals. Interestingly, the two landraces had the most favorable ω-6/ω-3 ratios (Cappuccio della Valtiberina, 12.45; Rugoso della Maremma, 13.71) among the genotypes except for Maragià (11.78), indicating better nutritional quality compared to commercial varieties (>14.00). These results demonstrated that landraces could offer promising prospects for future chickpea breeding programs, aiding in the selection of genotypes capable of adapting to changing growing conditions and supporting the development of sustainable food systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea is an important food legume that usually undergoes various processing treatments to enhance nutritional value and functional properties. This study aimed to investigate the effects of different cooking conditions on physicochemical, structural, and functional properties of chickpea, especially its protein macromolecules. Kabuli chickpea seeds were processed by water cooking at different temperatures (63, 79, 88, and 96°C), followed by evaluating flour solubility, water‐holding capacity (WHC), pasting property, as well as the total protein profile and fractionated protein distributions. Cooking treatments significantly decreased flour solubility (from 39.45 to 25.21 g/100 g flour) and pasting viscosity (peak and final viscosities, from 1081 to 300.5 cP and 1323 to 532 cP, respectively), while increasing WHC (from 0.862 to 1.144 g H2O/g flour) of chickpea flour (p < 0.05). These behaviors were enhanced by increasing cooking temperature. Meanwhile, cooking induced a significant change of chickpea proteins, modifying the albumin‐ and globulin‐like fractions of chickpea protein to display glutelin‐like behavior. The current study provides potential approaches for manipulating chickpea flour functionalities (e.g., solubility, viscosity, and WHC) to address the process and product challenges and favor product innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green synthesis leverages biological resources such as plant extracts to produce cost-effectively and environmentally friendly NPs. In our study, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are biosynthesized using blank roasted grams (Cicer arietinum) as reducing agents. CA-AgNPs were characterized by a characteristic surface plasmon resonance (SPR) peak at 224 nm in the UV–Vis spectrum. FTIR analysis revealed functional groups with O–H stretching at 3410 cm−1, C–H stretching at 2922 cm−1, and C=O stretching at 1635 cm−1. XRD patterns exhibited sharp peaks at 33.2°, 38.4°, 55.7°, and 66.6°, confirming high crystallinity. Morphological analysis through FESEM indicated spherical CA-AgNPs averaging 500 nm in size, with EDS revealing Ag at 97.51% by weight. Antimicrobial assays showed zones of inhibition of 14 mm against Candida albicans, 18 mm against Escherichia coli., and 12 mm against Propionibacterium acnes. The total phenolic content of CA-AgNPs was 26.17 ± 13.54 mg GAE/g, significantly higher than the 11.85 ± 9.57 mg GAE/g in CA extract. The ABTS assay confirmed the antioxidant potential with a lower IC50 value of 1.73 ± 0.41 µg/mL, indicating enhanced radical scavenging activity. Anti-melanogenesis was validated through tyrosinase, showing inhibition rates of 97.97% at the highest concentrations. The anti-inflammatory was evaluated by western blot, which showed decreased expression of iNOS and COX-2. This study demonstrates the green synthesis of CA-AgNPs and its potential biomedical applications. The results of this study demonstrate that biosynthesized CA-AgNPs have key biological applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genetic architecture of yield and yield contributing characters of five crosses in chickpea were performed by generation mean analysis. Non-significant χ2 values were noted for plant weight at harvest (PWH), number of pods per plant (NPd/P) and number of seeds per plant (NS/P) in cross-2; for number of secondary branches at first flower (NSBFF) and number of secondary branches at maximum flower (NSBMF) in cross-3 and for number of primary branches at maximum flower (NPBMF) in cross-4. Among these, PWH in cross-2; NSBFF and NSBMF in cross-3 and NPBMF in cross-4 were also non-significant regarding C and D scales. Non-significant scale coupled with non-significant χ2 values indicated only additive-dominance relationship for those characters and crosses that would likely be helpful in doing successful breeding plan easily for the development of potential lines in chickpea. Gene effects viz., additive [d], dominance [h], additive × additive [i] and dominance × dominance [l] were significant for different crosses and characters indicating involvement of additive, dominance, additive × additive and dominance × dominance gene interactions in the control of these traits. Most of the studied characters exhibited duplicate type of epistasis therefore, recurrent selection for these traits is suggested. Effective factor (K1) was less than one for all the characters and crosses indicating minimum one group of gene controlled the characters. Both broad (h2b) and narrow (h2n) sense heritability in majority cases were found to be high which indicates that selection for high heritability showing traits is likely to be effective. Mid-parent (MP) and better-parent (BP) heterosis found to be non-significant in maximum cases. All the characters and crosses showed non-significant inbreeding depression (ID) indicating a good sign for further genetic work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plant proteins have gained increasing interest as viable substitutes for dairy proteins, primarily due to their favorable functional and nutritional properties. In this study, the impact of varying pH levels (pH 3.0, 5.0, 7.0, and 9.0) on the structural and functional characteristics of chickpea albumin and globulin was investigated. Amino acid composition analysis revealed that globulin exhibited higher levels of aromatic and hydrophobic amino acid residues, aligning with its higher surface hydrophobicity. Gel electrophoresis data demonstrated that globulin predominantly consisted of polypeptides ranging from 10 to 60 kDa, while albumin primarily featured 18 kDa polypeptides with fewer disulfide bonds. At all tested pH levels, the globulin fraction exhibited higher fluorescence intensity values compared to albumin. Particularly, at pH 3.0, both components displayed tryptophan and tyrosine emission peaks, but with increasing pH, the tyrosine emission peak gradually diminished. Circular dichroism (CD) analysis further elucidated that albumin predominantly consisted of α-helical structures, with varying β-sheet content dependent on pH variations. Notably, albumin displayed significantly higher protein solubility than globulin at all pH values. Furthermore, significant differences in emulsion stability were noted, particularly at a sample concentration of 50 mg/mL, where albumin consistently exhibited superior stability compared to globulin. Overall, these findings hold significant promise for utilizing plant proteins in diverse food and beverage applications, capitalizing on their versatility and advantageous attributes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the three primary plant nutrients, plant growth and development depend on soil potassium (K) availability. However, plants often face K deficiency in the soil. Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is an excellent source of vegetable protein. However, optimum chickpea growth is affected by K limitation. This study evaluated whether K application in an Oxisol influences chickpea growth, grain yield, and nutritional status. We conducted a greenhouse experiment in an Oxisol with four K application rates (0, 40, 80, and 150 kg ha−1) and four replicates. Our results showed that K application significantly increased chickpea grain yield (R2 = 0.968), shoot weight, root dry weight, and the number of pods. In addition, the K application rate in the soil increased with increasing K application rate. In addition, the concentrations of K and P in the grain are affected by K application. In addition, K improved the K concentration in the shoot (R2 = 0.756) and grain (R2 = 0.833). However, the application of high levels of K did not increase K accumulation in the seeds, indicating that the use of low doses of K (≤80 kg ha−1) is sufficient to support plant growth and nutrition and avoid K loss. Finally, the benefits of K in plants are more than an increase in the grain yield of crops. However, K plays a dominant role in the root system. For instance, this benefit enhances K acquisition from the soil for plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the dynamics of soil phosphorus (P) over extended periods of soil and crop management practices is essential for sustainable P management. This study assessed the impact of four crop rotations [maize-wheat (M-W), maize-wheat-mungbean (M-W-Mb), maize-wheat-maize-chickpea (M-W-M-C), and pigeonpea-wheat (P-W)] each with three levels of nutrient management [control (CT), integrated nutrient management (suboptimal fertilizer+ farmyard manure + crop residue + bio-fertilizers; INM), and sole-chemical fertilizers (CF)] on soil inorganic and organic P (Pi and Po) pools and crop–soil relationships at the end of 15-year cropping. Legume-inclusive rotations resulted in higher labile-P pools, being higher with M-W-M-C and P-W. M-W-M-C rotation had higher moderately labile organic P (Po) in both surface (+23%) and subsurface (+18%) depths over M-W. Di-calcium P (Ca2-P) (+6%) and microbial biomass P (MBP) (+46%) increased in M-W-Mb over M-W, while iron-P (Fe-P) was reduced (−12%) in subsurface soil. INM enhanced bioavailable-P [soluble-P (+17%), labile-Pi (+15%) labile-Po (+12%), MBP (+96%), moderately labile-Po (+22%)] over CF in surface soil, while CF had a higher Fe-P (+16%). Legumes in rotation caused notable changes in the surface-to-subsurface ratio (SSBR) of Ca2-P (1.18–1.50) and occluded-P (1.64–2.78). INM had a higher SSBR of labile-P pools but had a lower SSBR of occluded-P facilitating mobilization of the later in the surface. Hence, in tropical soils, legume-inclusive diversification (particularly with chickpea) and INM involving crop residue recycling could be a sustainable option to improve P use efficiency, crop productivity, and save fertilizer resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water shortage is the most critical abiotic stress and adversely impacts crop growth and productivity. Biofertilizers are an environmentally friendly method for sustainable agricultural development and improving plant water deficit tolerance. The effects of biological and chemical fertilizers on yield, yield components, and nutrient absorption of chickpea plants were studied in 2018 and 2019. The main plots were assigned to the irrigation levels [80% (I80) and 50% (I50)] and the subplot was assigned to 13 fertilizer combinations including free-living N-fixing bacteria (NB), potassium solubilizing bacteria (KB), phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PB), common chickpea nutrition program (F; NPK chemical fertilizer), and their combination. The results showed that shoot phosphorus content was increased by 80% when F + NPB (NPK chemical fertilizer and N + P biofertilizers) was applied at I80 compared with the control at I50. Furthermore, I80 and the application of PKB (P + K biofertilizers) and NPKB (N + P + K biofertilizers) obtained the highest shoot K and N concentrations, respectively. The NPKF + B-treated plants (N + P + K chemical fertilizer and N + P + K biofertilizers) demonstrated superior growth attributes such as plant height and the number of sub-branches at I80. The highest grain yield was obtained from the NPKF + B treatment at I80, which was 7.1-fold higher compared with the control at I50. In general, the combined application of biochemical fertilizers mitigated the adverse effect of water deficit and improved nutrient absorption and chickpea yield. The use of biochemical fertilizers can be efficient in reducing the consumption of chemical fertilizers and achieving sustainable agricultural goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.; GB) is one of the most consumed pulses worldwide. Fermentation with lactic acid bacteria (LAB) has been a strategy to improve the nutritional and technological quality of chickpea flours, in addition to reducing the levels of antinutritional factors. Thus, this study evaluated the effect of fermentation with Lacticaseibacillus casei or co-culture on water activity (Aw), color, antioxidant capacity, and techno-functional properties of chickpea flour. Chickpeas were fermented at 28 °C for 96 h with Lactobacillus Casei or coculture, resulting in the samples GBLC and GBCC, respectively, dried at 50 °C, and ground to obtain the flours. Fermentation reduced (P < 0.05) the Wa and color parameters (L*, a*, and b*) of the fermented flours (GBCC and GBLC). In terms of techno-functional properties, GBCC flours showed lower emulsifying capacity (EC, 80%) and emulsion stability (ES, 82.50%). GBLC and GBCC flours showed significant differences (P < 0.05) in swelling power only at 25 °C and a reduction in water solubility index (WSI) at all studied temperatures. LAB fermentation reduced the antioxidant capacity of GBLC e GBCC flours determined by the DPPH method, while in the FRAP method, there was an increase for GBCC and a reduction for GBLC. For the total phenolic content (TPC), there was an increase of 231% for GBCC flour and 164% for GBLC flour. Thus, it was concluded that the fermentation with Lactobacillus Casei and co-culture affected the Wa, color, EC, ES, WSI, the antioxidant capacity by the DPPH and FRAP assays, and the TPC of the fermented flours. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drought stress is a universal crisis in sustaining the growth and production of major legumes, including the chickpea. Drought severely reduces the biomass of chickpea plants, with the effect on leaves appearing the most apparent. The aim of this study was to investigate, using various physiological and biochemical markers throughout the pod filling stage, how 78 desi chickpea genotypes tolerated drought stress. Most of the evaluated characteristics showed significant variations between control and drought treatments. The mean performance of most of the investigated parameters significantly decreased under moisture-stressed conditions. RWC, SWD, MSI, and CTD were investigated under terminal drought-stressed conditions. Except for saturated water deficit (SWD), all remaining characteristics declined with increasing stress. Genotypes SAGL152210, SAGL152252, SAGL152347, SAGL22-115, and JG11 were recognized as drought-tolerant based on physiological characteristics. Biochemical markers viz., protein content, total soluble sugar, lipid peroxidation, and proline content, had an impact on osmotic adjustment. Based on non-enzymatic biochemical traits, genotypes SAGL22-115, ICC4958, ICCV201108, ICCV201107, SAGL152252, and JG11 were identified for their capability to survive under drought-stressed conditions. H2O2 content, CAT, SOD, POD, APX, and DPPH were considered antioxidant agents. Genotypes SAGL152208, SAGL22-105, SAGL22-112, ICC201108, SAGL152278, SAGL152252, SAGL162371, SAGL162390, ICC 4958, and JG315 may be considered drought-tolerant based on antioxidant activities. These genotypes are believed to be better equipped with physio-biochemical mechanisms and antioxidant defense systems at the cellular level and can be used in breeding programs to breed drought-tolerant cultivar(s). They can also be screened in the future, allowing the line(s) that have remained consistent over time to be recognized and registered as drought-tolerant donors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a leguminous plant, chickpea has been widely concerned by researchers because of its high yield, low production cost, and high protein content. Compared with soy protein, chickpea protein has lower allergenicity, better solubility, and foaming properties. Therefore, chickpea protein is considered a good alternative to animal protein. Currently, chickpea protein is used in products made from flour, such as cookies, breads, and noodles. Chickpea protein emulsion also has many potential applications in food, such as delaying lipid oxidation, transporting nutrients, and serving as a substitute for animal fat. However, the physical, chemical stability and biological activity of chickpea protein emulsion are easily affected by many factors, including salt ionic strength, pH, temperature, and so forth in food processing. In order to better apply chickpea protein emulsions to more real food substrates, it is necessary and meaningful to study the factors that affect the characteristics of the emulsion. The properties of chickpea protein emulsion can be improved by pretreatment of chickpea protein, including pH adjustment, cross‐linking by glutaminase, hydrolysis of by protein hydrolase, formation of complex with glycosides or polysaccharides and acetylation modification. In the future, the optimized and stable chickpea protein emulsion will be more widely used in the food field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Chickpea is one of the economically important legume crops adapted for winter season production in tropical climates. This study evaluated the physiological, morphological, and biochemical traits of eight Kabuli chickpea genotypes in an Australian tropical environment. The result revealed significant differences between genotypes for seed emergence, plant height, primary shoots, leaf number, leaf area index, gas-exchange parameters, seed yield, carbon discrimination (Δ13C), and natural abundance for nitrogen fixation. Among the tested genotypes, AVTCPK#6 and AVTCPK#19 exhibited late flowering (60–66 days) and late maturity (105–107 days), and had higher leaf photosynthetic rate (Asat) (28.4–31.2 µmol m−2 s−1), lower stomatal conductance (gsw) (516–756 mmol m−2 s−1), were associated with reduced transpiration rate (T) (12.3–14.5 mmol m−2 s−1), offered greater intrinsic water-use efficiency (iWUE) (2.1–2.3 µmol m−2 s−1/mmol m−2 s−1), and contributed a higher seed yield (626–746 g/m2) compared to other genotypes. However, a larger seed test weight (>60 g/100 seed) was observed for AVTCPK#24, AVTCPK#8, and AVTCPK#3. Similarly, a high proportion (45%) of larger seeds (>10–11 mm) was recorded for AVTCPK#24. Furthermore, a higher %Ndfa in AVTCPK#6 (71%) followed by AVTCPK#19 (63%) indicated greater symbiotic nitrogen fixation in high-yielding genotypes. Positive correlation was observed between %Ndfa and seed protein, as well as between seed yield and plant height, primary shoots, leaf count, leaf area index, leaf photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, transpiration rate at pod filling stage, biomass, and harvest index. An inverse correlation between (Δ13C) and iWUE, particularly in AVTCPK#6 and AVTCPK#19, indicates greater heat and drought tolerance, required for high-yielding Kabuli chickpea production in northern Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Andisols are the least extensive soil order, accounting for less than 1% of Earth´s surface. Chile occupies 50% of the country´s land area for cereal production and is of great importance to agriculture. However, few studies have investigated the performance of cereal production under intercropping in P-deficient Andisols. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of two different Fabaceae species and wheat in an intercropping system on root morphology and soil properties. A 2-year field experiment was conducted using a completely randomized block experimental design with a factorial arrangement with two different phosphorus levels and cropping systems (wheat monoculture, wheat/lupine, and wheat/chickpea intercropping). Bulk soil samples were collected from a field that had been cultivated with wheat. Chemical properties, basal soil respiration, and enzymatic activity were measured. The morphological characteristics of wheat roots and crop yield were also determined. According to the multiple linear regression model (p < .001), this relative yield was related to an increase in phosphatase activity and root biomass. Furthermore, the Land Equivalent Ratio (LER) of the wheat/lupine intercrop surpassed 1 in both seasons, indicating improved soil and nutrient utilization. In contrast, the wheat/chickpea intercrops had LER values lower than one during the second season. This confirmed that wheat/lupine intercropping is a recommended practice for enhancing ecosystem services and agricultural production in Andisols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing global interest in plant‐based proteins stems from concerns about the environmental impact, sustainability, animal welfare, and health implications associated with consuming animal‐based proteins. In the frame of alternative protein sources, chickpea (Cicer arietinum) emerged as a rich source of dietary proteins besides containing good amount of carbohydrate, fat, and fiber. As a protein ingredient, chickpea is available in three forms, namely, flour, concentrate, and isolate. This chickpea protein can be extracted using both wet and dry fractionation methods where the former one includes wet extraction followed by isoelectric precipitation, while the later one indicates dry milling followed by air classification. However, different nonthermal emerging technologies have been seen to assist in extracting protein as well as modifying their functionalities. This review gives an outline of the recently available literature on composition, industrial processing and associated technological challenges, functionality, and application of chickpea protein ingredients. Furthermore, discussion on the modification/improvement of chickpea protein functionality with the assistance of emerging technologies and the potentiality of by‐products produced during chickpea protein processing are also included. Based on the available findings and discussion, it is seen that apart from being a comparable source of alternative animal‐based protein to extract, chickpea derived by‐products can also be a potential source of valued ingredients that might contribute to the circular economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The phosphate solubilizing properties of Lysinibacillus macroides ST-30, Pseudomonas pelleroniana N-26, and Bacillus cereus ST-6 were tested for the chickpea crop of the Tarai region of Uttarakhand. These microbially inoculated plants have shown significant (p > 0.05) improvement in the plant health and crop health parameters, viz., root length, shoot length, fresh weight, dry weight, nodule number, nodule fresh weight, nodule dry weight, chlorophyll content, and nitrate reductase. The highest shoot length (46.10 cm) and chlorophyll content (0.57 mg g-1 fresh weight) were observed in ST-30 at 75 DAS with 20 kg P2O5/ha. Similarly, for plant P content, an increase of 90.12% over control was recorded in the same treatment. Treatments consisting of Lysinibacillus macroides ST-30 along with 20 kg/ha P2O5 were found to be most suitable as phosphatic fertilizer. Conclusively, sustainable agriculture practices in the Tarai as well as the field region may be developed based on a strategy of exploring microbial inoculants from the pristine region of the Western Himalayas. The presence and abundance of bacterial inoculants were confirmed through qRT-PCT. We conclude that the effective plant growth-promoting bacterium Lysinibacillus macroides ST-30 broadens the spectrum of phosphate solubilizers available for field applications and might be used together with 20 Kg/ha P2O5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT The leguminous chickpea is a good source of protein, but its yield potential is frequently constrained by biotic stresses, primarily Helicoverpa armigera, a major havoc for cultivation of the crop. To develop host plant resistance for minimizing the losses due to the pod borer, five kabuli parents with desired traits for pod borer tolerance were crossed in diallel mating design to produce 10 crosses which were analysed for traits related to pod borer and nutrition. Based on correlation studies, trichome density was found positively correlated with phenol content, but both the traits were negatively associated with number of damaged seeds. Therefore, the tolerant genotypes were identified on the basis of phenol content, trichome density, number of damaged seeds and field rating. Among parents ICC 12197 was found superior in terms of yield and borer tolerance features with an intermediate pest resistance susceptible rating in addition to higher Fe content. However, significant sca effects for higher phenol content and seed yield in ICC 11764 × ICC 14190 were recorded with reduced number of damaged seeds in addition to higher Fe and Zn content. It was observed that the specific combination involved good and poor combiners for each trait. The same cross also showed significant standard heterosis in desirable direction for phenol content, trichome density, number of damaged seeds and seed yield. Additionally, the ratio of σ2 GCA to σ2 SCA revealed nonadditive gene action in controlling the expression of phenol content, trichome density, number of damaged seeds and Fe and Zn content. Thus, breeder may focus efforts on desirable cross utilizing selection in further segregating generations for higher phenol content, trichome density and Fe and Zn content in addition to yield‐related traits while lesser number of damaged seeds per plant to concentrate for development of pod borer resilient high yielding kabuli genotypes to combat micronutrient deficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the impact of extreme pH-cycling treatments on chickpea protein isolate (CPI). Untreated CPI, along with samples shifted to pH 2 (pH2) and pH 12 (pH12), displayed solubilities of 60.25%, 25.01%, and 75.48%, respectively. Both treatments significantly improved water and oil absorption capacities. Emulsion activity and stability for CPI at pH2 and pH12 were 125 m²/g and 110 m²/g, respectively, versus 75 m²/g for the untreated sample. Notably, the foaming capacity and stability of pH12-treated CPI increased by 3.5 and 8.8 times, respectively, compared to the untreated protein. pH12-treated CPI also demonstrated the lowest gelling concentration at 10%, compared to 14% and 18% for untreated and pH2-treated CPI, respectively. Microstructural analysis revealed partial disintegration of CPI under pH-cycling, underscoring that alkaline pH12-shifting notably enhances functional properties of CPI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Child under-nutrition is a major public health concern in developing countries including Ethiopia. Poor quality diet is the major determinant factor contributing to child undernutrition. Pulse crop production and consumption can improve children's nutrient quality and dietary diversity. This study aimed to compare the nutritional status and child health, dietary intake, and wealth index of preschool children among pulse crop producer and non-producer families in Ethiopia. The study hypothesized that children living in families who grew pulses and consumed pulses (rather than selling their crop) would have better nutritional status due to availability of this protein-rich food source. A cross-sectional survey was conducted to determine demographic background, child feeding and caring practice and varieties and amount of pulse crop produced at the household level. A simple random sampling technique was used to select a sample of 432 children aged 24-59 months from central Ethiopia the Data was entered to SPSS v 20, WHO Anthro-plus software used to calculate the anthropometry indices, child dietary intake, level of chickpea production and consumption and wealth index, were computed using logistic regression. Chickpea (cicer arietinum L) was produced by 55.3% of the participants. Most (60.7%) of the children from chickpea producer families were high pulse consumers whereas only 15.5% of children from non-producers were high chickpea consumers (the difference in proportion is significant at p-value<0.001). Close to 60 % of the children of the non-producer families had a low dietary diversity score (that is <3) compared with 18.8 % from the producer families (p-value <0.001). The study revealed that nutritional status of children in both producer and non-producer families were 41.0 % stunted, 16.1 % underweight and 6.1 % wasted. Stunting and underweight were significantly inversely associated with chickpea production at pvalue <0.001whereas for chickpea consumption, both stunting and underweight was significant at P < 0.05. However, wasting was not significantly associated with either production or consumption of chickpeas. In conclusion, chickpea production and consumption by families had a positive relationship with nutritional status of children. The authors recommend that engaging smallholder farmers in both chickpea production and consumption has potential in improving the dietary diversity and in turn benefit nutritional status of preschool children at the household level and therefore supporting smallholder farmer in chickpea production and consumption will help to contribute to decreasing the prevalence of under nutrition in the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ascochyta blight (AB) is a major threat to Kabuli-type chickpea production worldwide. This study aimed to identify AB-resistant Kabuli-type chickpea lines through combined phenotypic and genotypic screening. Twenty-six Kabuli-type chickpea lines were phenotyped at the seedling stage using spray inoculation with conidial suspension. Genotyping employed marker-aided selection (MAS) with markers linked to quantitative trait loci (QTL) for AB resistance. The allele-specific marker, CaETR, closely linked to QTLAR1, and the sequence-tagged microsatellite (STMS) markers GAA47, TAA146, and TA194 linked to QTLAR1, QTLAR2, and QTLAR3 were used to assess their utility in distinguishing between resistant and susceptible chickpea lines. The study revealed that none of the lines tested were completely resistant (R) phenotypically. However, some lines, such as AVTCPK#6 and AVTCPK#14, were found to be moderately resistant (MR). Of the two MR lines identified phenotypically, only AVTCPK#6 was found to have bands linked to QTLs for adult plant resistance. The other MR line for AB showed the presence of bands in only one or two of the four markers used. These MR lines can be further utilized in chickpea breeding programs for the development of AB-resistant chickpea cultivars. It is recommended that these results be verified through repeat experiments, using more diverse isolates, and including additional chickpea lines as reference checks for resistance and susceptibility. The allele-specific marker, CaETR, closely linked to QTLAR1 and sequence-tagged microsatellite (STMS) markers GAA47, TAA146 and TA194 linked to QTLAR1, QTLAR2, and QTLAR3 were used to explore these markers' utility in discriminating between resistant and susceptible chickpea lines. The study showed that phenotypically, none of the lines tested are completely resistant (R). However, some lines, namely AVTCPK#6 and AVTCPK#14, were found to be moderately resistant (MR). Of the two MR lines identified phenotypically, only AVTCPK#6 was identified to have bands linked to QTLs for adult plant resistance. The other MR line for AB showed the presence of bands in only one or two markers among the four markers used. These MR lines can be exploited further in chickpea breeding programs for the development of AB-resistant chickpea cultivars. It is recommended that these results are verified by repeat experiments, using more as well as diverse isolates alongside additional chickpea lines for resistant and susceptible reference checks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]