Agrobotanical traits and chemical composition of Cassia obtusifolia L.: a lesser-known legume of the Western Ghats region of South India.

Four accessions of the lesser-known legume, Cassia obtusifolia L. (Sickle pod), collected from four different agroclimatic regions of Western Ghats, were evaluated for agrobotanical traits and chemical composition. Among the four accessions, the Keriparai accession had the highest values for plant height (cm), number of flowers per cluster, number of pods per cluster, pod length (cm), seeds per pod, seed weight (g) per pod and seed recovery percentage. Crude protein ranged from 18.56-22.93%, crude lipid was between 5.35-7.40%, crude fiber ranged from 6.83-9.45%, ash content ranged from 5.14-5.83% and carbohydrate varied from 57.00-60.69%. Globulins constituted the bulk of the seed protein as in most legumes. Mineral profiles, viz., sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, copper, zinc and manganese ranged from 42.92-84.83, 758.05-1555.79, 559.92-791.72, 456.36-709.47, 629.13-947.79, 8.42-12.35, 0.93-2.06, 10.60-30.04 and 2.12-4.12 mg/100 g seeds flour, respectively. Seed proteins of all accessions exhibited relatively high levels of non-essential and essential amino acids, with the exception of threonine. The in vitro protein digestibility of the legume ranged from 74.66 to 81.44%. Antinutritional substances such as total free phenolics ranged from 0.34-0.66%; tannins were between 0.47-0.60%; L-DOPA content ranged from 0.98-1.34%; trypsin inhibitor activity varied from 11.4-13.5 TIU/mg protein and chymotrypsin inhibitor activity ranged from 10.8-12.3 CIU/mg protein. Phytohemagglutinating activity also was assayed. In conclusion, the accessions of C. obtusifolia, collected from Western Ghats, South India, could serve as a low-cost source of some important nutrients for humans. The antinutritional factors might have little nutritional significance, if the seeds are processed properly.