Sensory characterization of the perceived quality of East African highland cooking bananas (matooke).

BACKGROUND: It has recently become increasingly evident that banana projects in Uganda need to consider consumer preferences as part of the breeding process to increase the acceptability of new cultivars. A trained panel used quantitative descriptive analysis (QDA) as a tool to assess the sensory characteristics of 32 cooking bananas (matooke). The aim was to investigate which sensory characteristics best describe matooke. RESULTS: Fourteen descriptors were generated. The preferred attributes of matooke were high-intensity yellow color, homogeneous distribution of yellow color, good matooke aroma, highly moldable by touch, moist and smooth in the mouth. Analysis of variance revealed significant differences in the yellowness, homogeneity of color, firmness, moistness, smoothness, matooke aroma, hardness, and moldability across the genotypes (P < 0.05). Principal component analysis (PCA) showed strong positive correlations between yellowness and homogeneity of the color (R = 0.92). Smoothness in the mouth and moldability by touch were strongly and positively correlated (R = 0.88). Firmness in the mouth was well predicted by hardness to touch (R2 = 0.85). The matooke samples were ranked into two sensory clusters by agglomerative hierarchical clustering (AHC). CONCLUSION: The study showed attribute terms that could be used to describe matooke and also revealed that QDA may be used as a tool during the assessment and selection of new cooking banana hybrids to identify relevant sensory attributes because of its ability to discriminate among the banana hybrids. © 2023 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.

Integrated Health Care Delivery for Adolescents Living with and at Risk of HIV Infection: A Review of Models and Actions for Implementation.

Integrated service delivery, providing coordinated services in a convenient manner, is important in HIV prevention and treatment for adolescents as they have interconnected health care needs related to HIV care, sexual and reproductive health and disease prevention. This review aimed to (1) identify key components of adolescent-responsive integrated service delivery in low and middle-income countries, (2) describe projects that have implemented integrated models of HIV care for adolescents, and (3) develop action steps to support the implementation of sustainable integrated models. We developed an implementation science-informed conceptual framework for integrated delivery of HIV care to adolescents and applied the framework to summarize key data elements in ten studies or programs across seven countries. Key pillars of the framework included (1) the socioecological perspective, (2) community and health care system linkages, and (3) components of adolescent-focused care. The conceptual framework and action steps outlined can catalyze design, implementation, and optimization of HIV care for adolescents.

Internal Quality Assessment of East African Highland Cooking Banana (Musa spp.) Flour: Significance for Breeding and Industrial Applications.

This study assessed the internal quality traits of East African Highland cooking banana flours, exploring their significance for breeding and potential industrial applications. Twenty cultivars (nine hybrids and eleven landraces) were used. Swelling power capacity, water solubility, water absorption capacity, water absorption index, freeze-thawing stability, and pasting characteristics of banana flour were assessed using standard methods. The results showed that cultivars with high swelling power also exhibited a high water absorption capacity and water absorption index, thus making them suitable for bakery industries. The water absorption capacity ranged between 5.66% (N2) and 11.68% (N11). Landraces KBZ (9.01) and NKYK (8.05), and hybrids N11 (11.68) and N9 (8.48) are suitable as thickeners due to high WAC. Hybrids (N7, 27.83%, and N9, 22.59%) and landraces (NMZ, 32.69%, and NFK, 34.24%) had low freeze-thawing stability, hence it is applicable as a food stabilizer. Landrace NKT (19.14%) and hybrid N9 (16.95%) had the highest solubility, and landrace KBZ (6.93%) and hybrid N3 (6.66%) had the lowest solubility. Landraces MSK (6265), NKY (3980), and NFK (3957), and hybrids N6 (3608), N7 (3505), and N9 (3281 RVU) had high peak viscosity. The trough viscosity, final viscosity, and breakdown viscosity of cultivars varied from 422.5 to 5004 RVU. The landraces MSK (5021 RVU) and NFK (4111 RVU) had the highest final viscosity, making them suitable for application in the food industry for thick and stable sauces. Landrace TRZ had the lowest pasting temperature (62.7 °C), making it advantageous for use where fast gelatinization is required, hence saving energy costs and cooking time. These findings suggest that the genetic attributes inherent in cultivars can be incorporated into breeding programs targeting required traits for industrial application.

Evaluation of banana germplasm and genetic analysis of an F1 population for resistance to Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense race 1.

Fusarium wilt of bananas (Musa spp.), caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Foc) causes up to 100% yield loss in bananas. Foc race 1 in particular is very devastating to dessert bananas in Uganda. One of the effective control strategies for the disease is the development of resistant cultivars through breeding. The objectives of this study were to identify suitable banana germplasm for generating a segregating population for resistance to Foc race 1 and understand the mode of inheritance of resistance to Foc race 1. Twenty-two banana accessions sourced from the National Agricultural Research Organisation in Uganda were challenged with Foc race 1 in a screen house experiment. Monyet, resistant to Foc race 1 and Kokopo, susceptible, were selected and crossed to generate 142 F1 genotypes. These F1 genotypes were also challenged with Foc race 1 in a screen house experiment. Data were collected on rhizome discoloration index (RDI), leaf symptom index (LSI) and pseudo-stem splitting (PSS), and analysed for variability. The banana accessions evaluated showed varying degrees of resistance to Foc race 1. Segregation ratios for resistant versus susceptible progenies fitted 13:3 (χ2 = 0.12, P = 0.73) for RDI and 11:5 (χ2 = 3.04, P = 0.08) for PSS. Estimated broad sense heritability was 27.8% for RDI, 13.9% for LSI and 14.7% for PSS. The results suggest that resistance to Foc race 1 in banana is controlled by at least two dominant genes with epistatic interaction and that heritability of resistance to Foc race 1 is low in Musa spp.