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Lathyrus sativus

 

 
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Lathyrus sativus
 
 
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Lathyrus sativus, is a legume
Legume

A legume is a plant in the family Fabaceae , or a fruit of these specific plants. A legume fruit is a Fruit#Simple fruit that develops from a simple carpel and usually Dehiscence on two sides....
 (family Fabaceae) commonly grown for human consumption and livestock
Livestock

Livestock is the term used to refer to a domesticated animal intentionally reared in an agricultural setting to produce things such as food or fibre, or for its labour....
 feed in Asia
Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
 and East Africa
East Africa

East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN subregion, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
. It is a particularly important crop in areas that are prone to drought
Drought

A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation ....
 and famine
Famine

A famine is a widespread shortage of food that may apply to any faunal species, which phenomenon is usually accompanied by regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased death....
, and is thought of as an 'insurance crop' as it produces reliable yields when all other crops fail. It is also known as grass pea, blue sweet pea, chickling vetch, Indian pea, Indian vetch, white vetch, almorta or alverjón (Spain), cicerchia (Italy), guaya (Ethiopia), and khesari (India); consumption of this pulse in Italy is limited to some areas in the middle part of the country, and is steadily declining.






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Encyclopedia


Lathyrus sativus, is a legume
Legume

A legume is a plant in the family Fabaceae , or a fruit of these specific plants. A legume fruit is a Fruit#Simple fruit that develops from a simple carpel and usually Dehiscence on two sides....
 (family Fabaceae) commonly grown for human consumption and livestock
Livestock

Livestock is the term used to refer to a domesticated animal intentionally reared in an agricultural setting to produce things such as food or fibre, or for its labour....
 feed in Asia
Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
 and East Africa
East Africa

East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN subregion, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
. It is a particularly important crop in areas that are prone to drought
Drought

A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation ....
 and famine
Famine

A famine is a widespread shortage of food that may apply to any faunal species, which phenomenon is usually accompanied by regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased death....
, and is thought of as an 'insurance crop' as it produces reliable yields when all other crops fail. It is also known as grass pea, blue sweet pea, chickling vetch, Indian pea, Indian vetch, white vetch, almorta or alverjón (Spain), cicerchia (Italy), guaya (Ethiopia), and khesari (India); consumption of this pulse in Italy is limited to some areas in the middle part of the country, and is steadily declining. Seed is sold for human consumption at markets in Florence (organic growers) and could be procured through the company Manufactum several years ago.

Characteristics

Like other grain legumes, L. sativus produces a high-protein
Protein

Proteins are organic compounds made of amino acids arranged in a linear chain and joined together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of adjacent amino acid Residue ....
 seed. The seeds also contain variable amounts of a neurotoxic
Neurotoxin

A neurotoxin is a toxin that acts specifically on nerve cells , usually by interacting with membrane proteins such as ion channels.Some sources are more general, and define the effect of neurotoxins as occurring at nerve tissue....
 amino acid
Amino acid

In chemistry, an amino acid is a molecule containing both amine and carboxyl functional groups. These molecules are particularly important in biochemistry, where this term refers to alpha-amino acids with the general formula H2NCHRCOOH, where R is an organic substituent....
 ß-N-Oxalyl-L-a,ß-diaminopropionic acid
Oxalyldiaminopropionic acid

Oxalyldiaminopropionic acid is the neurotoxin responsible for lathyrism....
 or ODAP. ODAP is considered as the cause of the disease neurolathyrism, a neurodegenerative disease that causes paralysis
Paralysis

Paralysis is the complete loss of muscle function for one or more muscle groups. Paralysis can cause loss of feeling or loss of mobility in the affected area....
 of the lower body: emaciation of Gluteal muscle (buttocks). The disease has been seen to occur after famine
Famine

A famine is a widespread shortage of food that may apply to any faunal species, which phenomenon is usually accompanied by regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased death....
s in Europe (France, Spain, Germany), North Africa, South Asia
South Asia

South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries on the west and the east....
, and is still prevalent in Eritrea, Ethiopia
Ethiopia

Ethiopia , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country situated in the Horn of Africa. Ethiopia is bordered by Eritrea to the north, Sudan to the west, Kenya to the south, Somalia to the east and Djibouti to the northeast....
 and Afghanistan (pan handle) when Lathyrus seed is the exclusive or main source of nutrients for extended periods. Research has shown that ODAP concentration increases in plants grown under stressful conditions, compounding the problem.

Breeding programs are underway to produce lines of L. sativus that produce less ODAP.

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