Nutritional and toxicological studies on wild cowpea (dekindtiana var. Pubescen)

Abstract

The nutritional values of the wild cowpea (Dekindtiana var. pubescen) collected from three areas in Sokoto, Nigeria, were determined by standard procedures as follows, 3.3± 0.08% ash, 4.7± 0.08% moisture, 55.8± 0.08% crude protein, 3.2± 0.11% crude lipid and 23.0% carbohydrate. Others include 10.0± 0.06% fibre and 344Kcal gross energy respectively.The anti-nutritional factors composition was found to be 9.55± 0.01mg tannin, 70.5± o.08mg phytate, 188.0±0.83mg total oxalate and 99.5± 0.11mg soluble oxalate. The toxicity effects of the wild cowpea reflected on the experimental animals via weights declined from 226.74g to 118.40g for group A and from 257.98g to 99.40g respectively. More ever, the enzymes activities measured both in the serum and liver homogenate were also declined. In this study, the wild cowpea was identified as a good source of dietary protein despite of its anti – nutritional toxic agents which might likely cause unacceptable health problems.

Keywords: Wild cowpea flour, proximate analysis, anti – nutritional factors, liver homogenate, serum