UNDERUTILIZED PLANTS
Their Role in Preventive Medicine, Nutrition and Sustainability
Sponsored by The Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future at the Bloomberg School of Public Health
May 2, 2006

POSTER SESSION ABSTRACTS

Feed Quality, Chemical Characteristics, and Palatability of Ensiled vs Fresh Cassia tora L. and Phosphorus Uptake by Cassia tora L. as Affected by Phosphorus Source and Rate
O. Abaye, M. El Hadj, and M. Keita, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Cassia tora is the most prevalent weed species in the West African region of Mali. Cassia tora is considered as a poisonous plant.  However, the toxic element in Cassia has not been clearly defined. The objectives of our experiment are: to evaluate the chemical characteristics of ensiled vs. fresh Cassia tora; and to investigate the effect of additives on the quality of the ensiled material. Cassia tora with or without added treatments was ensiled for 60 or 90 days. The Cassia tora was collected from three locations. Prior to placing the chopped material in the bags for ensiling, sub-samples of fresh C. tora as well as the mixtures with additives were obtained for dry matter (DM) and chemical analysis (Neutral detergent fiber (NDF), Acid detergent fiber (ADF), and Crude Protein (CP).  After 60 or 90 days of ensiling, the silos were opened and samples for DM and chemical analysis were obtained. In addition to the nutritive value assessments, a greenhouse study was conducted to evaluate the effects of various Phosphorous sources and rates on Cassia tora L. growth. Phosphorous sources included Tilemsi rock phosphate from Mali (TPR), North Carolina rock phosphate (NPR), aluminum phosphate (AlP), iron phosphate (FeP), and triple superphosphate (TSP). Fertilizers were applied to an acidic (pH=5.8) Shottower soil at rates of 0, 20, 40, 60, and 80 (TSP only) mg P kg-1 soil. Cassia tora was grown for 11 weeks. The ensiled material across treatments and locations had NDF varying from 48 % to 56 %, ADF from 34 % to 41 %, CP from 9 % to 10 %, and IVDMD from 53 to 64 % in year 1. The fresh material had NDF from 56 % to 57 %, ADF from 40 % to 42 %, CP from 9 % to 10 %, and In vitro dry matter digestibility from 52 to 54 %. Analyses for toxic substances will be performed on all samples for both years. These results of the P study showed that C. tora can produce acceptable yields of dry matter at low level of soluble soil P. The plant was also shown to produce more (than the low level and the control treatments) dry matter in response to higher levels of available P
* A. Ozzie Abaye is an alternative crops specialist and Extension Agronomist,. Department of Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA.

Research on Anti-Obesity Formulations of Garcinia (Kokam Tree):
Their Effect on Rural Economy
Karanam Balasubramanyam, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Garcinia cambogia and Garcinia indica are two Garcinia species belonging to the plant family Guttiferea which is endemic to the Indian peninsula. These fruits are used for culinary purposes in India. In recent years, Garcinia products are in great demand in developed countries due to presence of (-) Hydroxycitric acid, a potent inhibitor (Ki~150nM) of ATP dependent citrate lyase, an enzyme involved in fatty acid synthesis and cholesterol biosynthesis in mammals. This demand led to export of Garcinia products to US and Europe and had a direct effect on rural economy in India. A detailed discussion about the scientific research on Garcinia and its effect on rural economy in India will be presented.

Health and Food Safety Implications of Organic vs. Conventional Management of Fruit Trees: Impacts on Phyllosphere Bacteria.
Andrea Ottesen, Chris Walsh, and Michael Newell, University of Maryland, College Park

Research continues to elucidate increasingly sophisticated aspects of human - microbial interconnectedness. Our project utilizes an existing, statistically-significant, randomized complete block orchard planting to study biological principles underlying agricultural sustainability and the health and food safety implications of Organic vs. Conventional crop management.

Organic agriculture is currently the fastest growing area of agriculture in the United States. Our work focuses on the streamlining of the logistics involved in managing a “certified organic” crop while simultaneously investigating the impacts of organic vs. conventional chemical applications on fruit and leaf surface bacterial microflora.

Use of universal primers (16s) with PCR, allows us to amplify ribosomal DNA (rDNA) from all bacterial species in both organic and conventional treatments. Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (DGGE) is capable of separating the rDNA fragments to a resolution of even one base pair difference.  Resulting gels from this technique provide “snapshots” of bacterial community profiles found on produce grown in the contrasting agricultural systems. Sequencing of rDNA fragments from bacterial species from both treatments allows us to gain a better understanding of how diverse agricultural chemicals are impacting phyllosphere bacterial communities.

Preliminary work has identified significant differences in the compositional diversity of bacterial populations found in organic vs. conventionally managed crops.

Seventy six percent of all bacterial sequences recovered from conventional samples were members of the Gram negative bacterial family of highly significant human pathogens: Enterobacteriaceae.  This family is home to pathogenic genera such as Salmonella, Escherichia (E. coli), Yersinia (plague), Enterobacter and many others. 

Only ten percent of all bacterial sequences form organic treatments were members of Enterobacteriaceae.

A Test of Social Marketing to Increase the Dietary Use of Vitamin A-rich Moringa Leaves by Rural People in Orissa, India
David A. Kimble and Jeffrey S. Faus, Trees for Life

A campaign was conducted to identify replicable social marketing techniques that would motivate people to increase their dietary intake of nutrient-rich Moringa (Moringa oleifera) leaves. The campaign was conducted in 20 rural villages of Orissa, India. The methodology focused on empowerment of local people through their involvement in designing and implementing every phase and level of the campaign. Effectiveness of the methodology was evaluated both qualitatively and quantitatively via observations as well as pre- and post-campaign surveys conducted by an independent agency. Through consultation with experts and local people, activities were designed to customize the message for the appropriate segments of village society: school students, women, post-high-school-age youth, and the village as a whole. A survey conducted seven months after the completion of the campaign showed an increase from 30% in the baseline survey to 84% of households who included Moringa leaves in their diets three to four times a week. The study concluded that such a campaign can be effective through inspiration and participation of local people and adapting scientific information to the style and traditions of local culture.

Detecting Contamination of Herbal Products Using  DNA “Biocoding” Regions: A Case Study with Star Anise (Illicium verum)
George C. Ziobro, US Food and Drug Administration
Andrea Ottesen, University of Maryland, College Park

Seedpods of Illicium verum Hook f., (Star Anise), are used in the preparation of teas, herbal remedies, and culinary dishes. Shikimic acid, extracted from the seedpods, is a crucial precursor for the synthesis of Avian bird flu medication, Tamiflu®. 

Adulteration by seedpods of other Illicium species poses a health risk due to elevated levels of neurotoxic compounds (veranisatins), such as anisatin and neoanisatin present in other Illicium species.  Over the last few years the FDA has received reports of seizures, vomiting, jitteriness and irritability after individuals have consumed Star Anise. Such symptoms are consistent with adulteration by other Illicium species.  The Agency issued an advisory on Star Anise “teas” on September 10th, 2003.

Similarities in seedpod morphological characters preclude their use to definitively speciate individual seedpods, whereas adulteration at low levels by other Illicium species is not detectable by biochemical methods because Star Anise contains similar compounds at trace levels.

Our work reports on the analysis of multiple Biocoding regions from plastid and nuclear DNA, to develop a reliable method of distinguishing between Illicium species. Upon identification of successful Biocoding regions to distinguish between toxic and non toxic Illicium species, a protocol will be developed for the rapid identification of adulterated preparations of Star Anise. These methods will prove useful for other situations where definitive identification of medicinal and poisonous plant species is crucial for product safety and human health.