Potential Importance of Molybdenum Priming to Metabolism and Nutritive Value of <i>Canavalia</i> spp. Sprouts

• Published in: Plants
• Main Authors: Mohammad K. Okla, Nosheen Akhtar, Saud A. Alamri, Salem Mesfir Al-Qahtani, Ahmed Ismail, Zahid Khurshid Abbas, Abdullah A. AL-Ghamdi, Ahmad A. Qahtan, Walid H. Soufan, Ibrahim A. Alaraidh, Samy Selim, Hamada AbdElgawad
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-11-01
• Subjects: <i>Canavalia</i>; molybdenum; seed priming; nitrogen assimilation
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/10/11/2387

Molybdenum ions (Mo) can improve plants’ nutritional value primarily by enhancing nitrogenous metabolism. In this study, the comparative effects of seed priming using Mo were evaluated among sproutings of <i>Canavalia</i> species/cultivars, including <i>Canavalia ensiformis var. gladiata</i> (CA1), <i>Canavalia ensiformis var. truncata Ricker</i> (CA2), and <i>Canavalia gladiata var. alba Hisauc</i> (CA3). Mo impacts on growth, metabolism (e.g., nitrogen and phenolic metabolism, pigment and total nutrient profiles), and biological activities were assayed. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to correlate Mo-mediated impacts. The results showed that Mo induced photosynthetic pigments that resulted in an improvement in growth and increased biomass. The N content was increased 0.3-fold in CA3 and 0.2-fold in CA1 and CA2. Enhanced nitrogen metabolism by Mo provided the precursors for amino acids, protein, and lipid biosynthesis. At the secondary metabolic level, phenolic metabolism-related precursors and enzyme activities were also differentially increased in <i>Canavalia</i> species/cultivars. The observed increase in metabolism resulted in the enhancement of the antioxidant (2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate (DPPH) free radical scavenging, 2,2-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP)) and antidiabetic potential (Glycemic index (GI) and inhibition activity of α-amylase, and α-glucosidase) of species. The antioxidant activity increased 20% in CA3, 14% in CA1, and 8% in CA2. Furthermore, PCA showed significant variations not only between Mo-treated and untreated samples but also among <i>Canavalia</i> species. Overall, this study indicated that the sprouts of <i>Canavalia</i> species have tremendous potential for commercial usage due to their high nutritive value, which can be enhanced further with Mo treatment to accomplish the demand for nutritious feed.