Potential role of neglected and underutilized plant species in improving women's empowerment and nutrition in areas of sub-Saharan Africa.

In the context of the nutrition transition, women in sub-Sahara Africa are a critical target group from a nutrition standpoint, and they experience significant discrimination in food production. Food-based, women-centered strategies are recommended to address nutrient gaps, and to educate and empower women. In this context, local natural resources, such as neglected and underutilized plant species (NUS), may contribute to adding nutritional value, enriching diet diversity, and ensuring nutrition security. The aim of the current narrative review is to investigate the nutritional status of the sub-Saharan African population and the potential role of local agriculture strategies in improving food production and diet diversity and in expanding income-generating activities for women. The nutritional properties of the most important regional NUS are also discussed.

DNA barcoding to promote social awareness and identity of neglected, underutilized plant species having valuable nutritional properties.

It is estimated that about 7000 plant species and a large number of cultivars and varieties have been cultivated for consumption in human history. However, <0.5% of these currently provide the majority of human food energy needs worldwide (e.g., rice, wheat, maize, and potato). Global issues such as climate change, diffusion of pests, and resistance to agrochemical treatments are posing great concern about the sustainable cultivation of these major staples, especially in equatorial and tropical countries, such as Sub Saharan Africa. In addition, most of these regions contain malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies, and the sum of such problems create serious implications at social, political, and economic levels. A possible solution relies on the exploitation of plant biodiversity and particularly on the so-called NUS (Neglected and Underutilized Species). These plants are traditionally grown in their centres of origin and continue to be maintained by sociocultural preferences, however they remain inadequately documented and neglected by formal research and conservation programs. Although they are important in terms of micronutrients and the ability to grow in harsh conditions, these species are falling into disuse due to agronomic, genetic, economic, and cultural reasons. To promote and spread their cultivation at the global scale, along with knowledge on their suitability for human nutrition, reliable identification systems are necessary to guarantee adequate authenticity along the entire supply chain and distribution network. A precise identification of the different species and their varieties is fundamental both to retrieve information on their origin and authenticate the raw materials (i.e., seeds, leaves and fruit) and related processed products that can be distributed at the local or global scale. DNA-based techniques can help achieve this mission. In particular, the DNA barcoding approach has gained a role of primary importance due to its universality and versatility. Here, we discuss the advantages in using DNA barcoding for the identification of some of the most representative NUS species, as well as their traceability and conservation of cultural practices around them.

Linalool and linalool nerolidol synthases in roses, several genes for little scent.

Roses are widely appreciated for the appearance of their flowers and for their fragrance. This latter character results from the combination of different odorant molecules among which monoterpenes are often prevalent constituents. In this study, we report the cloning and characterization of three rose monoterpene synthases. In vitro functional characterization of these enzymes showed that one is a (-)-(3R)-linalool synthase whereas the others have a dual (+)-(3S)-linalool nerolidol synthase activity. However, given that the characterized rose cultivars were only able to produce the (-)-(3R)-linalool stereoisomer, the linalool nerolidol synthases are probably not active in planta. Furthermore, these three enzymes were also characterized by a weak expression level as assessed by RT-qPCR and by the low abundance of the corresponding sequences in an EST library. This characteristic is likely to explain why linalool is generally a minor constituent in rose flowers' scents. On this basis, we propose that in roses the monoterpene biosynthesis effort is focused on the production of acyclic monoterpenes derived from geraniol through the recently characterized Nudix biosynthesis pathway, at the expense of conventional monoterpene biosynthesis via terpene synthases such as linalool or linalool nerolidol synthases.