product is of particular importance for people who are unable to digest casein or animal lactose.
Quinoa starch can be used for specialized industrial applications because of its small granules and high viscosity (Galwey et al., 1990). Starches having small-sized granules could serve as dusting starches in cosmetics and rubber tyre mould release agents (Bhargava et al., 2006a). Quinoa starch also has potential for utilization as biodegradable fillers in low-density polyethylene (LDPE) films (Ahamed et al., 1996a). However, this aspect needs more investigation for effective utilization in the food, pharmaceutical and textile industries. Because of its mechanical properties, quinoa starch can be utilized in the manufacture of carrier bags, where tensile strength is important. Studies on freeze–thaw stability of quinoa starch have shown that its paste is resistant to retrogradation, suggesting applications in frozen and emulsion type food products (Ahamed et al., 1996b; Bhargava et al., 2006a). Another potential use of the plant could be in cloth dyeing and food preparation because of the presence of betalains, a natural colorant (Jacobsen et al., 2003b).
Quinoa has been evaluated as a food with excellent nutritional characteristics by the National Research Council and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (Schlick and Bubenheim, 1996). The plant is being considered as a potential crop for NASA’s Controlled Ecological Life Support System (CELSS), which aims to use plants to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and generate food, oxygen and water for the crew of long-term space missions (Schlick and Bubenheim, 1996).
1.3.4 Medicinal importance
The use of quinoa for medicinal purposes has also been reported (Mujica, 1994). The plant is reportedly used in inflammation, as an analgesic and as a disinfectant of the urinary tract. It is also used in fractures and internal haemorrhaging and as an insect repellent (Mujica, 1994). The presence of glycine betaine, trigonelline and their derivatives has been reported in the plant (Jancurova et al., 2009). In humans, glycine betaine can be readily absorbed through dietary intake or endogenously synthesized in the liver through choline catabolism. The concentration of glycine betaine in human blood plasma is highly regulated. Its concentrations are lower in patients with renal disease, and its urinary excretion is elevated in patients with diabetes mellitus (Dini et al., 2006). Glycine betaine intake can lower plasma homocysteine levels in patients suffering from homocystinuria, and in chronic renal failure patients with hyperhomocysteinemia, as well as in healthy subjects (Tang et al., 2002; Jancurova et al., 2009). Recently, the cell wall polysaccharides of quinoa seeds (arabinan and arabinan-rich pectic polysaccharides) showed gastroprotective activity on ethanol-induced acute gastric lesions in rats (Cordeiro et al., 2012). These reports can open new avenues for use of quinoa as a medicinal crop.
Dietary flavonoids are thought to have health benefits, possibly due to antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties (Hirose et al., 2010). Quinoa seeds are the most effective foodstuff as a source of flavonoids among cereals and pseudo-cereals. Recent studies have identified large amounts of flavonoid conjugates in quinoa seeds, such as kaempferol and quercetin oligomeric glycosides (Zhu et al., 2001; Dini et al., 2004; Hirose et al., 2010). Flavonoids, one of the typical polyphenols in vegetables, fruits and tea, can prevent degenerative diseases such as coronary heart disease (Arts and Hollman, 2005), atherosclerosis (Kurosawa et al., 2005), cancers (Rice-Evans and Packer, 1998), diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease (Youdim et al., 2004), through antioxidative action and/or the modulation of several protein functions (Hirose et al., 2010). Quinoa also contains appreciable amount of vitamin E (Repo-Carrasco et al., 2003). This is important since this vitamin acts as an antioxidant at the cell membrane level, protecting the fatty acids of the cell membranes against damage caused by free radicals.
The highly nutritious quinoa flour could be used to supplement protein-deficient wheat flour, commonly used for human consumption, in regions where protein deficiency occurs. Quinoa can be recommended for maturity-onset diabetes patients because of its low fructose and glucose. Quinoa flour can be used as a substitute for wheat flour in the production of bread for celiac consumers, with substitutions in small amounts having shown a positive effect on the quality of the breads (Park et al., 2005). One study showed increase in the level of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) in the plasma of children who consumed a supplementary portion of an infant food prepared by drum-drying a pre-cooked slurry of quinoa flour (Ruales et al., 2002).
1.4 Concluding Remarks
Quinoa’s ability to produce grains high in protein under ecologically extreme conditions makes it important for the diversification of future agricultural systems, not just in mountainous regions, but also in the plains (Bhargava et al., 2006a). The high nutritional quality and multiple uses in food products makes quinoa seed ideal for utilization by the food industry. Other potential uses of quinoa include: a flow improver in starch flour products, fillers in the plastic industry, anti-offset and dusting powders, and a complementary protein for improving the amino acid balance of human and animal foods (Bhargava et al., 2006a). Efforts should be directed to evolving edible varieties with high-quality components, better yield, large seed size and low saponin content. Making quinoa more popular would require dissemination of information about the crop among farmers as well as consumers, proper marketing and efficient post-harvest technologies. Quinoa has the potential to shed its underutilized status and become an important industrial and food crop of the 21st century.
References
Abugoch, L.E. (2009) Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.): composition, chemistry, nutritional, and functional properties. Advances in Food Nutrition Research 58, 1–31.
Adolf, V.I., Shabala, S.N., Andersen, M.N., Razzaghi, F. and Jacobsen, S.-E. (2012) Varietal differences of quinoa’s tolerance to saline conditions. Plant and Soil 357, 117–129.
Ahamed, N.T., Singhal, R.S., Kulkarni, P.R., Kale, D.D. and Pal, M. (1996a) Studies on Chenopodium quinoa and Amaranthus paniculatas starch as biodegradable fillers in LDPE films. Carbohydrate Polymers 31, 157–160.
Ahamed, N.T., Singhal, R.S., Kulkarni, P.R. and Pal, M. (1996b) Physicochemical and functional properties of Chenopodium quinoa starch. Carbohydrate Polymers 31, 99–103.
Andersen, S.D., Rasmussen, L., Jensen, C.R., Mogensen, V.O., Andersen, M.N. and Jacobsen, S.-E. (1996) Leaf water relations and gas exchange of field grown Chenopodium quinoa Willd. during drought. In: Stolen, O., Pithan, K. and Hill, J. (eds) Small Grain Cereals and Pseudocereals. Workshop at KVL, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Ando, H., Chen, Y., Tang, H., Shimizu, M., Watanabe, K. and Miysunaga, T. (2002) Food components in fractions of quinoa seed. Food Science and Technology Research 8, 80–84.
Anthony, K., Haq, N. and Cilliers, B. (eds) (1995) Genetic resources and utilization of underutilized crops in southern and eastern Africa. Proceedings of Symposium held at the Institute for Tropical and Subtropical Crops, Nelspruit, South Africa, August 1995. Food and Agriculture Organization, International Centre for Underutilised Crops and Commonwealth Science Council.
Arts, I.C.W. and Hollman, P.C.H. (2005) Polyphenols and disease risk in epidemiologic studies. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 81, 317S.
Bermejo, J.E.H. and León, J. (1994) Neglected crops:1492 from a different perspective. FAO Plant Production and Protection Series No. 26. FAO, Rome, Italy.
Bhargava, A., Shukla, S., Katiyar, R.S. and Ohri, D. (2003) Selection parameters for genetic improvement in Chenopodium grain on sodic soil. Journal of Applied
