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Evaluation of the Anti-nutritional Substances in the Fruit of Gleditsia triacanthos L.: Economic Interest and Perspectives of Valorization in Algeria



Author(s)

Samia Benhamiche, Hachemi Benhassaini and Kheira Chabane

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DOI:10.17265/2162-5298/2016.04.005

Honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos L.), also called sweet-locust or thorny-locust, is a moderately fast growing tree. It is widely planted for windbreaks and soil erosion control and largely recommended like food of cattle since it can provide a source of fodder, protein and metabolic energy. Its flowers are incredibly attractive for pollinating insects and thus, form a source of pollen and nectar for honey. This tree was introduced in Europe in 1700 and was introduced by the colonists into Algeria in 1949. In order to valorize the natural substances of this species, the evaluation of the composition of its fruits (pods and seeds separately) in polyphenols, condensed tannins and hydrolysable tannins, which considered as anti-nutritional substances has been done. The obtained results showed that the fruits of Gleditsia triacanthos L. contain very low values in anti-nutritional factors with (0.13%-0.03%) of condensed tannins, (0.78%-0.45%) of hydrolysable tannins and (0.44%-0.16%) of total phenols for pods and seeds, respectively. It arises that these fruits can be of a great interest for many industries especially for feedstock.

Gleditsia triacanthos L., anti-nutritional substances, pods and seeds, valorization