Abstract
The grasspea is potentially an extremely valuable pulse crop. It is a quick maturing annual which is agronomically undemanding and is tolerant of both drought and waterlogging. It is well adapted to production in the cool season (winter) of warm temperate and subtropical areas (Mediterranean basin, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Ethiopia). As a pulse it is palatable and nutritious (ca. 27% protein) but it contains a toxic non-protein amino acid ODAP (β-N-oxalyl-L-αβ diamino propionic-acid) or BOAA (β-N-oxalylamino-L-alanine). This interferes with the normal functioning of nerves controlling leg movement and induces an irreversible paralysis. The apparent solution of this problem lies in the development of stable low ODAP containing lines whose consumption does not evoke the paralytic syndrome of neurolathyrism.
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Smartt, J., Kaul, A., Amlak Araya, W., Rahman, M.M., Kearney, J. (1994). Grasspea (Lathyrus sativus L.) as a potentially safe legume food crop. In: Muehlbauer, F.J., Kaiser, W.J. (eds) Expanding the Production and Use of Cool Season Food Legumes. Current Plant Science and Biotechnology in Agriculture, vol 19. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-0798-3_7
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