Macro- and Micronutrients from Traditional Food Plants Could Improve Nutrition and Reduce Non-Communicable Diseases of Islanders on Atolls in the South Pacific

Type 2 Diabetes Prevalence, Control and Management within Fiji,Kiribati, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, and Vanuatu: A ScopingReview with a Systematic Approach

BACKGROUND

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) causes significant morbidity and is disproportionately prevalent in Pacific Island Countries (PICs). The socio-political demographics of PICs are rapidly changing, and health services must adapt to match the needs of their population.

OBJECTIVES

The objective of this study was to review the literature published within the last 15 years relating to T2D prevalence, control, and management, with a specific focus on targetable areas for future funding and research projects.

METHODS

This review was conducted using the PRISMA guidelines. Inclusion criteria were: discussion on T2D in the six PICs. Results were limited to those published between 1st January, 2006, and 27th July, 2023.

RESULTS

A total of 6,640 publications were retrieved, and 110 met the inclusion criteria. Nineteen additional studies were identified through hand-searching. T2D prevalence differed between countries but was predicted to increase in the coming decades, with projections of up to 31.2% by 2030 in Tonga. Factors associated with T2D varied between countries, including Indian-Fijian ethnicity in Fiji and tuberculosis in Kiribati. Control was generally poor, with high rates of undiagnosed diabetes and microvascular complications. Epidemiological data was limited in some cases, as was information describing the structure and function of diabetes services.

CONCLUSION

The prevalence, control, and management of T2D varied between Fiji, Kiribati, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, and Vanuatu. Significant gaps remain in the data describing these domains; however, there are clearly targetable areas for future research and diabetes management programs.

Phytochemical composition and antioxidant activities of some wild edible plants locally consumed by rural communities in northern Uganda

Background

Acalypha rhomboidea, Asystacia gangetica, Crassocephalum sacrobasis, Crotalaria ochroleuca, Heterosis rotundifolia, Hibiscus cannabinus, Hibiscus sp., Hibiscus surratensis, Ipomoea eriocarpa, Maerua angolensis, Senna obtusifolia and Vigna membranacea are among the common wild edible plants in the Acholi sub-region, northern Uganda. This study evaluated the phytochemical constituents and antioxidant potential of the plants.

Methods

Fresh leaves collected from each plant species were air-dried under shade. The phytochemical contents of the ethanol and petroleum ether extracts were determined using standard protocols. The antioxidant content of the methanolic extracts was assessed by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay.

Results

Preliminary phytochemical analyses indicated the presence of tannins, reducing compounds, alkaloids, flavonoids, flavons aglycones, flavanosides, anthracenosides, anthocyanosides, volatile oils, coumarins, steroid glycosides, sterols and triterpenes. However, the extracts did not contain any emodols and saponins. The results of the quantitative phytochemical analysis showed that the contents of different phytochemicals detected varied significantly (p < 0.05) among the selected plants. The amount of tannins in mg/g (gallic acid equivalent) of dry weight varied from 3.90 ± 0.16 in C. ochroleuca to 10.41 ± 0.78 in I. eriocarpa, total flavonoids in RE, mg/g dry matter from 4.07 ± 0.11 in I. eriocarpa to 14.94 ± 0.08 in S. obtusifolia. Total alkaloids in mg/100 g ranged from 1.59 ± 0.30 in I. eriocarpa to 6.37 ± 0.24 in Hibiscus sp. Total phenolic content in GAE, mg/g dry matter ranged from 13.39 ± 0.26 in A. rhomboidea to 64.25 ± 0.54 in I. eriocarpa. The in vitro antioxidant assays revealed substantial free radical scavenging activity in all the plants. Antioxidant activity expressed as IC50 (ppm) ranged from 13.39 for A. rhomboidea to 64.84 for I. eriocarpa, compared to 12.82 for ascorbic acid standard. The total phenolic compounds and total tannins had significant and positive correlations with DPPH free radical scavenging activity.

Conclusion

The findings of this study provide evidence that the species are good natural sources of phytochemicals and antioxidants, whose regular consumption could provide human health benefits by protecting against oxidative stress related diseases. Further research is needed on the structural characterization of the phytochemicals, profiling the plant extracts with high antioxidant activity and determining the antimicrobial activities.

Determination of Nutritional and Biochemical Composition of Selected Pleurotus spps

The global demand for good quality food is going to be increased gradually. Mushrooms are broadly used as healthy nutritious meals. The nutritional values of extracts from four distinct Pleurotus species-Pleurotus ostreatus, Pleurotus sajor-caju, Pleurotus sapidus, and Pleurotus columbinus-were determined in the current study. Firstly, proximate analysis of selected Pleurotus species was performed followed by the Bradford assay to analyze the protein spectrophotometrically; high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was performed for sugar determination while GC-MS was done to determine fatty acids on organic extracts of selected mushrooms. Descriptive statistics were used to calculate the percentages while significance was determined by SPSS statistics. The results depicted that fat, protein, ash, fiber, energy contents, and total carbohydrate were in the range of 0.64-2.02%, 16.07-25.15%, 2.1-9.14%, 6.21-54.12%, 342.20-394.30 kcal/100 g, and 65.66-82.47%, respectively. The protein's maximum concentration was observed in P. ostreatus followed by P. columbinus>P. sajor-caju>P. sapidus, sequentially. Various sugars may or may not be present in selected Pleurotus spps. Among the fatty acids, the prevalence of UFA was more than that of saturated fatty acids among all selected mushrooms. From this study, it is concluded that all four Pleurotus spps. have excellent nutritional composition and can be used as valuable food and a great source of biochemical compounds.

Linking small-scale fisheries co-management to U.N. Sustainable Development Goals

Small-scale fisheries account for 90% of global fishers and 40% of the global catch. Effectively managing small-scale fisheries is, therefore, crucial to progressing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Co-management and community-based fisheries management are widely considered the most appropriate forms of governance for many small-scale fisheries. We outlined relationships between small-scale fisheries co-management and attainment of the SDGs, including evidence for impacts and gaps in dominant logic. We identified 11 targets across five SDGs to which small-scale fisheries co-management (including community-based fisheries management) can contribute; the theory of change by which these contributions could be achieved; and the strength of evidence for progress toward SDG targets related to various co-management strategies. Our theory of change links the 11 SDG targets by qualifying that progress toward some targets is contingent on others being achieved first. We then reviewed 58 case studies of co-management impacts from the Pacific Islands--a region rich in local marine governance--to evaluate evidence of where, to what degree, and with how much certainty different co-management strategies conferred positive impacts to each SDG target. These strategies included access restrictions, permanent area closures, periodic closures, and gear and species restrictions. Although many studies provide evidence linking multiple co-management strategies to improvements in resource status (SDG 14.4), there was limited evidence of follow-on effects, such as improvements in catch (SDG 2.3, 2.4), livelihoods (SDG 1.2), consumption (SDG 2.1), and nutrition (SDG 2.2). Our findings suggest that leaps of logic and assumptions are prevalent in co-management planning and evaluation. Hence, when evaluating co-management impacts against the SDGs, consideration of ultimate goals is required, otherwise, there is a risk of shortfalls between aspirations and impact.

Efficient In Vitro Sterilization and Propagation from Stem Segment Explants of Cnidoscolus aconitifolius (Mill.) I.M. Johnst, a Multipurpose Woody Plant

Cnidoscolus aconitifolius (Mill.) I.M. Johnst is a multipurpose woody plant. In this study, an in vitro efficient propagation system of stem segment explants derived from field-grown C. aconitifolius plants was established for the first time. The sterilization effect, axillary bud initiation, and proliferation efficiency of stem segments were evaluated. The results showed that the sterilization time of 0.1% mercuric chloride, the concentration of Plant Preservative Mixture (PPM), the pretreatment method, and the sampling season had significant effects on the sterilization of stem segments (p < 0.05). The type of medium and plant growth regulators (PGRs) affected the initiation of axillary buds, and the proliferation efficiency was significantly affected by PGRs. The results showed that the best sterilization method for stem segment explants was as follows: a pretreatment by rinsing with running water for 120 min, soaking in 75% ethanol for 50 s, soaking in 0.1% mercuric chloride for 10 min, and medium supplemented with 3 mL/L PPM. When inoculated on the medium in spring, the contamination rate was as low as 25.56%. The optimal initiation medium for axillary buds in stem segments was half-strength Murashige and Skoog (1/2 MS) medium supplemented with 0.5 mg/L 6-benzyladenine (6-BA). The induction rate was as high as 93.33%, and the mean length of axillary buds was 2.47 cm. The optimal proliferation medium was 1/2 MS medium supplemented with 4.0 mg/L 6-BA and 0.2 mg/L indole-3-butyric acid (IBA). The induction rate was up to 80.00%, the total proliferation coefficient was 4.56, and the net proliferation coefficient was 5.69. The 1/2 MS medium supplemented with 0.1 mg/L 6-BA and 1.5 mg/L indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) was most conducive to the elongation of the adventitious shoot, and the adventitious shoot of approximately 1 cm reached 1.93 cm after culturing for 14 days. The best medium for adventitious shoot rooting was 1/2 MS medium supplemented with 0.1 mg/L α-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA), the highest rooting rate was 82.00%, and the survival rate of transplanting was over 90%.

A review on bioactive phytochemicals and ethnopharmacological potential of purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.)

The Portulaca oleracea L. commonly known as purslane is distributed all over the world and easily grows in diverse soil and climatic conditions. It has been traditionally used as a nutritious and ethnomedicinal food across the globe. Various studies have shown that the plant is a rich source of various important phytochemicals such as flavonoids, alkaloids, terpenoids, proteins, carbohydrates, and vitamins such as A, C, E, and B, carotenoids and minerals such as phosphorus, calcium, magnesium and zinc. It is particularly very important because of the presence of a very high concentration of omega-3- fatty acids especially α-linolenic acid, gamma-linolenic acid and linoleic acid, which are not generally synthesized in terrestrial plants. Various parts of purslane are known for ethnomedicinal and pharmacological uses because of its anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, skeletal muscle relaxant, antitumor, hepatoprotective, anticancer, antioxidant, anti-insomnia, analgesic, gastroprotective, neuroprotective, wound healing and antiseptic activities. Due to multiple benefits of purslane, it has become an important wonder crop and various scientists across the globe have shown much interest in it as a healthy food for the future. In this review, we provide an update on the phytochemical and nutritional composition of purslane, its usage as nutritional and an ethnomedicinal plant across the world. We further provide a detailed account on ethnopharmacological studies that have proved the ethnomedicinal properties of purslane.

Evaluation of multielement/proximate composition and bioactive phenolics contents of unconventional edible plants from Brazil using multivariate analysis techniques

Unconventional edible plants (UEP) are potential supplementary sources of minerals and bioactive compounds. However, there is still a gap in the literature on UEP composition. In this study, the multielement/proximate composition of ten UEP from Brazil was evaluated by ICP OES. Furthermore, phenolic bioactives were quantified by HPLC-UV-DAD. The UEP showed high moisture content (84.85-95.27%) and elements (in mg Kg^-1): Al (122-657), Ca (145-14,229), Cu (8.3-18.81), Fe (177-586), K (12.46-34.50%), Mg (157-1,552), Mn (16.85-84.96), Na (1,107-23,775), P (2,535-6,127), Si (189-1,695), Sr (25.56-104.63) and Zn (0.3-72.31). Nine phenolic bioactive compounds (1-2,147) and three flavonoids (1-2,042 mg Kg^-1) were determined. PCA and HCA grouped samples (Java ginseng, Coriander, Spearmint and Indian borage) rich in minerals. Spearmint showed high levels of transcinamic acid, kaempferol and quercetin. This study contributes to the scientific development and use of UEP.

Plant Biodiversity and Genetic Resources Matter!

Plant biodiversity is the foundation of our present-day food supply (including functional food and medicine) and offers humankind multiple other benefits in terms of ecosystem functions and resilience to climate change, as well as other perturbations. This Special Issue on 'Plant Biodiversity and Genetic Resources' comprises 32 papers covering a wide array of aspects from the definition and identification of hotspots of wild and domesticated plant biodiversity to the specifics of conservation of genetic resources of crop genepools, including breeding and research materials, landraces and crop wild relatives which collectively are the pillars of modern plant breeding, as well as of localized breeding efforts by farmers and farming communities. The integration of genomics and phenomics into germplasm and genebank management enhances the value of crop germplasm conserved ex situ, and is likely to increase its utilization in plant breeding, but presents major challenges for data management and the sharing of this information with potential users. Furthermore, also a better integration of in situ and ex situ conservation efforts will contribute to a more effective conservation and certainly to a more sustainable and efficient utilization. Other aspects such as policy, access and benefit-sharing that directly impact the use of plant biodiversity and genetic resources, as well as balanced nutrition and enhanced resilience of production systems that depend on their increased use, are also being treated. The editorial concludes with six key messages on plant biodiversity, genetic erosion, genetic resources and plant breeding, agricultural diversification, conservation of agrobiodiversity, and the evolving role and importance of genebanks.