Search

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is one of the crucial legume crops and a primary source of protein for human beings worldwide. The genetically diverse accessions are valuable sources for further improvement in chickpeas through breeding. In the presented study, the 36 chickpea lines from the Chickpea International Elite Nursery-Winter, International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), bore assessment for yield-related traits. Determining the effects of various quantitative and yield-attributing traits on the seed yield used linear regression. Simple linear regression models ran separate evaluations for each studied parameter, including plant height, the height of the first pod, the number of secondary branches, the number of pods, the number of seeds per plant, and 100-seed weight. According to analysis for high seed productivity in chickpea cultivation under organic production conditions, the approximate model ensures a high yield as follows: The plant height ranged from 68 to –78 cm, height to the first pod (26–31 cm), number of secondary branches (8–14), number of pods (52–79), number of seeds (64–95), and 100-seed weight (25–45 g). In determining the seed productivity of chickpea genotypes, a direct positive and significant correlation occurred between the 100-seed weight and the number of seeds per plant. These parameters can serve as effective selection criteria for enhancing the chickpea yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wood distillate (WD) has recently emerged as a promising bio-stimulant for sustainable legume crop production, owing to its ability to enhance seed yield and quality. However, no studies exist on the effects of WD on chickpea plants at pre-harvesting stages, hindering the farmers’ ability to acquire valuable knowledge on the early action of WD on the plants’ status and preventing the establishment of proactive measures to optimize WD use in agriculture. In this study, two multispectral, thermographic and spectroradiometric surveys, along with in-situ measurements of specific plant biometric traits, were conducted across the reproductive stage of field-grown chickpea in order to evaluate the early involvement of WD on plant health. The acquired multispectral images were used to calculate the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), revealing a notable ~35% increase in NDVI scores of WD-treated plants at the onset of physiological maturity, and indicating an improved plant status compared to the control (water-treated) plants. Moreover, control and WD-treated plants exhibited distinct spectral signatures across the visible, near-infrared (NIR) and short-wave infrared (SWIR) spectra, suggesting potential changes in their photosynthetic capacity, structural properties and water content both at the leaf and at the pod level. Furthermore, WD-treated plants showed a 25% increase in pod production, particularly at the beginning of seed maturity, suggesting that enhancements in plant status were also reflected in higher pod yields. These results point to a beneficial effect of WD on plant health during the preliminary stages of seed formation and indicate that a combination of both multispectral and spectroradiometric analyses can provide critical insights on the status of chickpea crops at pre-harvesting stages. In addition, these findings emphasize the importance of analyzing pre-harvesting stages to gain insights into the early involvement of WD in promoting plant health and, ultimately, in predicting final crop yields.

Chickpeas are more sustainable than other food systems and have high a nutritional value, especially regarding their vitamin composition. One of the main vitamins in chickpeas is vitamin B6, which is very important for several human metabolic functions. Since chickpeas are consumed after cooking, our goal was to better understand the role of leaching (diffusion) and thermal degradation of vitamin B6 in chickpeas during hydrothermal processing. Kinetics were conducted at four temperatures, ranging from 25 to 85 °C, carried out for 4 h in an excess of water for the diffusion kinetics, or in hermetic bags for the thermal degradation kinetics. Thermal degradation was modeled according to a first-order reaction, and diffusion was modeled according to a modified version of Fick’s second law. Diffusivity constants varied from 4.76 × 10−14 m2/s at 25 °C to 2.07 × 10−10 m2/s at 85 °C; the temperature had an impact on both the diffusivity constant and the residual vitamin B6. The kinetic constant ranged from 9.35 × 10−6 at 25 °C to 54.9 × 10−6 s−1 at 85 °C, with a lower impact of the temperature. In conclusion, vitamin B6 is relatively stable to heat degradation; loss is mainly due to diffusion, especially during shorter treatment times.

Tends on human nutrition change every day but legumes act significant role for nutrition over the World. Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is a member of Leguminosae family and originated from Asia. Chickpea is rich with protein, carbohydrate, lipid and minerals. It is also sufficient for Daily requirement by view of the essential amino acids – lysine, leucine and arginine. Chickpea is also source of soluble and insoluble fibers. The nutritional fibers have favorable effects on decreasing the time of food passing through intestine, accelerating of weight loss, decreasing of total and LDL cholesterol and balancing of blood sugar level. Sustainability of agriculture is essential for sustainability of life. From this perspective, chickpea is quite important due to various agronomic advantages that may be summarized by main ones are; able to grow as winter crop, lower water requirement, wide adaptation ability to climate and soil, a good alternative for crop rotation systems in addition to health care features. Present research is realized to evaluation of second crop growing facilities in Uşak/Turkey ecology by using 4 chickpea genotypes (Azkan, Hisar, Sarı-98, Yaşa-05) by 4 sowing time (18th June, 02nd July, 16th July, 30th July) by 3 replications. The following measurements were realized; days to emergence, days to flowering, days to harvest, height of plant, number of pod per plant, number of seed per pod, height of first pod, seed yield and weight of hundred seeds. According to the results Yaşa-05 chickpea genotype was determined as the most adaptable in addition to the Azkan chickpea genotype was also obtained as promising to growing as second crop. Deep and long term studies are needed to achievement of more consistent results and providing to sustainability of food security, improvement of soil, better usage of natural sources and contribute to national economy.

The effects of dietary replacement of soybean meal (SBM) with two different protein sources (cowpea [CWP] and chickpea [CKP]) on growth performance (GP), blood parameters and breast meat fatty acids (FA) content were evaluated. A total of 780 one-d-old broiler chicks (Cobb 500) were allocated, over 2 growth phases (starter, 0–21 d; finisher, 22–42 d), to 5 dietary treatments as follow: (1) a corn-SBM basal diet as control; (2) 10% raw cowpea; (3) 20% raw cowpea; (4) 10% raw chickpea and (5) 20% raw chickpea. The results indicated that CWP and CKP diets conducted to similar GP (body weight, body weight gain, feed intake and feed conversion ratio) when compared to the SBM diet, but changes in the content of blood parameters were observed. Glucose and total cholesterol decreased significantly in birds fed CWP (p

Wood distillate (WD) has recently emerged as a promising bio-stimulant for sustainable legume crop production, owing to its ability to enhance seed yield and quality. However, no studies exist on the effects of WD on chickpea plants at pre-harvesting stages, hindering the farmers' ability to acquire valuable knowledge on the early action of WD on the plants' status and preventing the establishment of proactive measures to optimize WD use in agriculture. In this study, two multispectral, thermographic and spectroradiometric surveys, along with in-situ measurements of specific plant biometric traits, were conducted across the reproductive stage of field-grown chickpea in order to evaluate the early involvement of WD on plant health. The acquired multispectral images were used to calculate the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), revealing a notable ~35% increase in NDVI scores of WD-treated plants at the onset of physiological maturity, and indicating an improved plant status compared to the control (water-treated) plants. Moreover, control and WD-treated plants exhibited distinct spectral signatures across the visible, near-infrared (NIR) and short-wave infrared (SWIR) spectra, suggesting potential changes in their photosynthetic capacity, structural properties and water content both at the leaf and at the pod level. Furthermore, WD-treated plants showed a 25% increase in pod production, particularly at the beginning of seed maturity, suggesting that enhancements in plant status were also reflected in higher pod yields. These results point to a beneficial effect of WD on plant health during the preliminary stages of seed formation and indicate that a combination of both multispectral and spectroradiometric analyses can provide critical insights on the status of chickpea crops at pre-harvesting stages. In addition, these findings emphasize the importance of analyzing pre-harvesting stages to gain insights into the early involvement of WD in promoting plant health and, ultimately, in predicting final crop yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chickpea is a second most important pulse crop grown in 56 countries and India rank first in production which shares 61.4% of the total world chickpea production however, productivity is very low as compared to other countries. Therefore, varietal development with inherent tolerance to biotic and abiotic stress is the prime objective to improve component productivity traits to get better yield in rainfed agro-climatic conditions. Methods: Ninety germplasm accessions of chickpea along with four check viz., JG 14, JG 16, JAKI 9218 and Radhey were evaluated in augmented block design at experimental research farm of Banda University of Agriculture and Technology, Banda, Uttar Pradesh, India. Phenotypic data were subjected to study the genetic parameters and association analysis of yield and its component traits using SPAR 2.0 Package and Windostat Version 9.2. Result: The significant variation was observed for all the traits except number of secondary branches, number of pod per plant, number of seeds per pod among the genotypes. The maximum GCV and PCV was observed for height of first pod (35.28 and 39.29), followed by seed yield per plant (29.77 and 40.32) and number of primary branches (25.63 and 31.44). The high magnitude of heritability with genetic advance was estimated for seed index (96.61%), while the high genetic advance as per cent of mean was recorded for first pod height (65.27%). The positive and significant association of seed yield with number of pods per plant, seed index, number of seeds per pod, number of secondary branches, number of primary branches and height of first pod indicating the importance of these traits in selection criteria. Path analysis identified that number of seeds per pod, number of pods per plants, seed index and number of secondary branches per plant as highly desirable component for direct effect on seed yield per plant. The genotypes ICVT-181106 had highest selection indices for seed yield followed by ICVT-181107, PUSA-1053, JG-218, GNG-1999, ICVT-181102 and HC-5. Therefore, high GCV and PCV, significant positive direct and indirect correlation and high estimate of selection indices for grain yield can be directly and indirectly used for chickpea breeding program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is one of the most important pulse crops in the world. In Tunisia, the chickpea is vulnerable to fluctuation in production in the last few decades. However, phytohormones are known to play crucial roles in regulating different development processes in plants. Methods: This research was conducted in Petri dish and pot experiments in order to determine the effect of gibberellic acid (GA3) and indole butyric acid (IBA) phytohormones on some growth parameters of chickpea. In this study, GA3 at concentrations of 0, 0.05, 0.1, 0.15 and 0.2 g/l and IBA at concentrations of 0, 10-5, 10-4, 10-3 and 10-2 g/l were applied at different stages of chickpea development. Result: Results of Petri dishes trial revealed that IBA (10-4g/l) and GA3 (0.2 g/l) hormones improved significantly the shoot and root length of chickpea plant. Results of pots pointed out that the chickpea achieves the highest plant height when IBA (10-4 or 10-3 g/l) and GA3 (0.2 g/l) were used at pre-flowering stage. The IBA and GA3 application with concentrations of 10-3 g/l and 0.1 g/l, respectively allowed the highest nodule number at post-flowering stage. The parameters number of branches, fresh and dry weight of the aerial part and leaves number were improved in chickpea plants treated with IBA and GA3 at pre-flowering and post-flowering, respectively. Similarly, the number of flowers was promoted by the two hormones. The weight and the number of seeds were significantly enhanced by all IBA treatments in plants. An increase in weight and the number of seeds was observed at post-flowering phase of GA3 treatment. Thus, these results identified the beneficial effect of tested phytohormones in chickpea growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpeas are one of the most important pulse crop in the world, and production in Brazil is small, but ramping up. In regions where cultivation is recent, such as the state of Rio de Janeiro, it is important to evaluate the agronomic performance of different chickpea cultivars, their adaptability to edaphoclimatic conditions and phytosanitary aspects. Pests can vary from one location to another and pose risks to the crop. Caterpillars are the main pests of chickpea in Brazil and throughout the world. Thus, this work aims to evaluate the occurrence of caterpillars associated with chickpea culture in an experimental area, in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Four chickpea cultivars were evaluated (BRS Aleppo, BRS Cícero, BRS Cristalino and BRS Toro), using randomized block distribution and four replications per treatment. The greatest rate of damaged pods occurred in the BRS Aleppo and BRS Cristalino cultivars with 62%, while BRS Toro showed 48% and BRS Cícero 25%. Two species of Lepidoptera identified as Chloridea virescens and Helicoverpa armigera (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) were found attacking the chickpea pods (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). Of these, 14 (64%) were C. virescens and eight (36%) were H. armigera. This is the first report of these two species in chickpeas in the state of Rio de Janeiro. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is the world's third most important pulse crop. Collar rot caused by Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc. is an important devasting disease of chickpea in areas where seedling is exposed to high temperature and high moisture in the soil, affected seedlings turn yellow, which can be easily pulled out, which causes considerable damage to the plant stand. Botanical's control is very important aspects to minimize cost of cultivation and also to avoid environment pollution and health hazards. Thus, Botanicals extracts were tested for their efficacy against S. rolfsii for manage the disease. Methods: Present investigation was undertaken for bio-efficacy of aqueous botanical extracts of different non-host plants viz., neem seeds kernel extract (NSKE), neem leaves extract (NLE), tulsi leaves extract (TLE), datura leaves extract (DLE), aak leaves extract (ALE), lantana leaves extract (LLE), kaner leaves extract (KLE) and gajargass leaves extract (GLE) were evaluated in vitro at three concentrations viz., 5, 10 and 15% against S. rolfsii causing collar rot of chickpea, by using poisoned food technique. Most effective in vitro evaluate botanical extracts further tested for their efficacy against management of the disease under pot experiment in net house. Result: The result revealed that all the botanical extracts are significantly inhibited the growth of test organism at all the concentrations tested after 96 h of inoculation. The NSKE recorded significantly superior in inhibiting mycelial growth up to 47.22 and 59.44% at 10 and 15% concentration, respectively with a mean of 46.85%, followed by tulsi leaves extract with 43.61 and 56.11% at 10 and 15% concentration respectively with a mean of 43.61%. While, at 5% concentration both extracts at par statistically to each other. Lantana leaves extract is found statistically at par with tulsi leaf extract at all concentrations least inhibition was observed in kaner leaves extract under in vitro condition. Under pot experiments all the treatments proved significantly superior when compared with inoculated control. NSKE @ 15% concentration was found significantly superior to control the disease, when applied through seed treatment and integration of seed treatment and post emergence seedling drenching at 7 DAG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), the third largest produced pulse worldwide, is primarily grown on marginal soils often characterized by a phosphorus (P)-deficiency that severely hampers yields. The objectives of the study are to investigate the relationships between the P-acquisition, P-use efficiency (PUE) and the agronomical performances towards the developing varieties tolerant to the P-deficiency. We evaluate the impact of the P-deficiency on the growth, yield, germination and nodulation performances of seven chickpea cultivars grown in fields with a low-P soil availability, during two seasons. The adaptive mechanisms to maintain the efficiency of the physiological processes, such as the nitrogen (N)-fixing nodule function, germinability, and possibly photosynthesis, are revealed. In contrast, the large genotypic variation in the yield components, in the P and N acquisition, and in the PUE is observed, supporting the role of the nodules in the P uptake in P-deficient soils. The P-acquisition and utilization efficiencies are genetically decoupled, suggesting designing distinct breeding strategies to promote one or both PUE components. As an outcome, we identify a set of chickpea cultivars adapted to a region with a soil P scarcity, that exhibit efficient N and P metabolism and a superior productivity. This germplasm can be used in breeding programs for low-P input efficient chickpeas. This contributes to the implementation of eco-friendly farming practices while making the most of marginal soils.

Introduction: Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is one of the most important legumes in the world (Keifer, 2018). After India, Australia, and Pakistan, Iran has taken the fourth rank in terms of chickpea cultivation area, and the decrease in rainfall and especially the plant's exposure to heat and drought stress at the end of the season is the reason for the decrease in crop yield (SabaghPour et al., 2010; FAO, 2018). In general, drought stress and its relationship with the reduction of yield and its components in crops plants can be primarily attributed to the closing of stomata in response to low soil water content, during which the entry of carbon dioxide into the leaf is reduced, and as a result, it causes a reduction in photosynthesis. Materials and methods: In order to investigate the effect of irrigation regimes on the yield and yield components of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), an experiment was conducted at the research farm of Shahed University during 2021-2022 as a split plot design in the form of random complete blocks. The first factor is irrigation systems at three levels: 1) supplementary irrigation (Irrigation at two sowing times and before flowering based on 20% available soil water, 2) complete or control irrigation (irrigation based on 20% available soil water), 3) Low irrigation regime (irrigation based on 40% available soil water) is the second factor of autumn (November 15) and spring (March 15) sowing dates. Irrigation was carried out in the form of streams and stacks, and the ends of the plots were completely closed to prevent water from escaping. Data analysis and calculations related to simple Pearson correlation coefficients between traits were performed with SAS (ver 9.4) and SPSS (ver 23) software, respectively, and the average of treatments was compared by LSD test at a statistical level of 5%. The graphs were drawn using Excel software. Results and discussion: The results of the variance analysis of the interaction between irrigation regime and planting date showed that there is a significant difference between the traits of number of branches per plant, number of pods per plant, plant height, number of seeds per plant, harvest index, biological yield and seed yield. The results of comparing the averages also showed the highest number of branches per plant (9.83), the number of pods per plant (30.5), plant height (51.08) cm, and the number of seeds per plant (26.66). The harvest index was 0.48 percent, the biological yield was 4670 kg ha-1, and the seed yield was 2384.17 kg ha-1 for the autumn planting date treatment under the autumn irrigation regime (irrigation based on draining 20% of crop capacity moisture). The highest correlations with grain yield were obtained by traits: plant height (r = 0.986**), number of branches per plant (r = 0.966**), harvest index (r = 0.962**), number of seeds per plant (r = 0.961*), biological yield (r = 0.956**), hundred seed weight (r = 0.933**) and number of empty pods per plant (r = 0.880*). Conclusion In general, the results of this experiment indicate that the Low irrigation regime is more efficient than Supplementary irrigation in all traits after the control irrigation regime in autumn sowing. Therefore, the Low irrigation regime is suggested as a low irrigation regime suitable for the conditions of the tested region for the sowing of chickpeas in autumn, and in addition, other autumn sowing dates of this variety should be studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is an annual plant that is found in temperate and semiarid areas of the world including Pakistan. Since Pakistan has a coastal belt that is home to different types of seaweeds, this study was conducted to observe the effects of seaweed Cystoseira indica on the germination rate of Desi and Kabuli chickpeas. Five concentrations of seaweed liquid fertilizer (SLF), 1%, 2%, 3%, 4% and 5% were tested for both varieties of chickpeas. The germination percentage and initial lengths of plumules and radicles were observed daily. Results showed that germination started earlier than usual in all concentrations. Overall, Desi chickpeas responded well in lower concentrations of SLF (1% and 2%), whereas Kabuli chickpeas showed promising results in higher concentration (4%), and the difference between control and SLF was less. This study concludes that seaweed liquid extract of Cystoseira indica can be used for a better germination rate of chickpeas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Being a vital source of high-quality dietary protein, chickpea is an unavoidable legume. The present investigation was performed to study the applicability of the microsatellite markers linked with drought tolerance in Indian chickpea genotypes collected from different genetic background. Methods: In Rabi 2021-22, forty chickpea genotypes including national check for drought tolerance, elite cultivars, released varieties and advanced breeding lines were screened employing forty microsatellite markers linked with drought tolerance associated traits. Result: Among forty drought tolerance related microsatellite markers, twenty-six were found to be polymorphic and produced a total of 66 alleles, with a mean of 2.5 alleles per locus. Model-based population structure analysis clearly distinguished the drought tolerant genotypes including ICC4958, JG74, JAKI9218, JG16, JG6, JG14 and JG11. The principle coordinate analysis (PCoA) and analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) further confirmed these results. Findings of the present investigation would have a greater potential for further utilization in breeding of drought specific chickpea cultivar(s). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Excessive use of nitrogen has become a threat to human health and the environment due to high concentrations of nitrate and nitrite accumulating in surface and ground waters. Biological dinitrogen fixation (N2) is a very important natural process in world agriculture. Rhizobia is a common name for a certain Gram-negative group of Alphaproteobacteria and Betaproteobacteria that can form nodules on the root and fix nitrogen in symbiosis with legumes as their host plants. Azotobacter spp. is a free-living microorganism that has the ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen into the soil. Field trials were carried out of Eskişehir Osmangazi University Field Crops Department experiment areas during the production season of 2017 and 2019. The study was evaluated the effects on morphological and phenologocial characters of two N doses (0 and 25 kg ha-1 N), four bacteria inoculations (control, Rhizobia, Azotobacter, Rhizobia + Azotobacter) on chickpea cultivars (Azkan, Akca, Cakir, Isik). Experiment arranged in split split plot experimental design with three replications. Nitrogen application positively affected number of days to emergence, number of branches, branch diameter and grain yield. Phenological and morphological properties affected by climate conditions. The high temperature caused the number of days to emergence, number of days to flowering and number of days to maturity to be earlier in the second year. Plant height, first pod height and grain yield were higher first year than second year due to high precipitation. While the response of the cultivars was different in terms of phenological properties, Azkan cultivar gave the best results in terms of morphological properties. Rhizobia + Azotobacter inoculation gave the best results in terms of phenological and morphological characteristics except for number of days to maturity. Rhizobia + Azotobacter inoculation can lead to additional income generation of the farming community in Turkey. The use of biofertilizers may reduce the application of chemical fertilizers and we get healthy, pollution-free production for a better future for our increasing populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea is a nutritionally dense pulse crop with high levels of protein, carbohydrates, micronutrients and low levels of fats. Chickpea fatty acids are associated with a reduced risk of obesity, blood cholesterol, and cardiovascular diseases in humans. We measured four primary chickpea fatty acids; palmitic acid (PA), linoleic acid (LA), alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), and oleic acid (OA), which are crucial for human health and plant stress responses in a chickpea diversity panel with 256 accessions (Kabuli and desi types). A wide concentration range was found for PA (450.7–912.6 mg/100 g), LA (1605.7–3459.9 mg/100 g), ALA (416.4–864.5 mg/100 g), and OA (1035.5–1907.2 mg/100 g). The percent recommended daily allowances also varied for PA (3.3–6.8%), LA (21.4–46.1%), ALA (34.7–72%), and OA (4.3–7.9%). Weak correlations were found among fatty acids. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) were conducted using genotyping-by-sequencing data. Five significant single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified for PA. Admixture population structure analysis revealed seven subpopulations based on ancestral diversity in this panel. This is the first reported study to characterize fatty acid profiles across a chickpea diversity panel and perform GWAS to detect associations between genetic markers and concentrations of selected fatty acids. These findings demonstrate biofortification of chickpea fatty acids is possible using conventional and genomic breeding techniques, to develop superior cultivars with better fatty acid profiles for improved human health and plant stress responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea, Cicer arietinum, is a multipurpose Fabaceae species, widely used around the world, notably as a source of protein, used to restore soil fertility, which can tolerate high temperatures and arid climate. This research was aimed at evaluating the nutritive value of fodder from the chickpea, local cultivar 'ICHEL', grown in monoculture in an experimental field of the National Botanical Garden (Institute), Chişinău, Republic of Moldova. The results revealed that the dry matter of the whole Cicer arietinum plant contained 19.7% CP, 20.5%CF, 12.6% ash, 24,0% ADF, 37.6% NDF, 4.6% ADL, 18.1% TSS, 19.4% Cel, 13.6% HC, with nutritive and energy value 815 g/kg DMD, 737 g/kg DOM, RFV=174, 11.25 MJ/kg ME and 7.26 MJ/kg NEl. The quality of the prepared hay was: 19.4% CP, 23.8% CF, 13.4% ash, 28.3% ADF, 43.8% NDF, 5.4% ADL, 8.9% TSS, 22.9% Cel, 15.5% HC, 748 g/kg DMD, 647 g/kg DOM, RFV=142, 10.76 MJ/kg ME and 6.77 MJ/kg NEl. The dry matter of the fermented fodder contained 22.2% CP, 15.0% CF, 14.6% ash, 18.1% ADF, 31.3% NDF, 2.0% ADL, 19.8% TSS, 16.1% Cel, 13.2% HC, 59.62 mg/kg carotene, 890 g/kg DMD, 810 g/kg DOM, RFV=222, 13.2 MJ/kg ME, 7.48 MJ/kg NEl. The harvested biomass of the chickpea cultivar 'Ichel' can be used as alternative fodder for farm animals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), the third largest produced pulse worldwide, is primarily grown on marginal soils often characterized by a phosphorus (P)-deficiency that severely hampers yields. The objectives of the study are to investigate the relationships between the P-acquisition, P-use efficiency (PUE) and the agronomical performances towards the developing varieties tolerant to the P-deficiency. We evaluate the impact of the P-deficiency on the growth, yield, germination and nodulation performances of seven chickpea cultivars grown in fields with a low-P soil availability, during two seasons. The adaptive mechanisms to maintain the efficiency of the physiological processes, such as the nitrogen (N)-fixing nodule function, germinability, and possibly photosynthesis, are revealed. In contrast, the large genotypic variation in the yield components, in the P and N acquisition, and in the PUE is observed, supporting the role of the nodules in the P uptake in P-deficient soils. The P-acquisition and utilization efficiencies are genetically decoupled, suggesting designing distinct breeding strategies to promote one or both PUE components. As an outcome, we identify a set of chickpea cultivars adapted to a region with a soil P scarcity, that exhibit efficient N and P metabolism and a superior productivity. This germplasm can be used in breeding programs for low-P input efficient chickpeas. This contributes to the implementation of eco-friendly farming practices while making the most of marginal soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea is an important edible legume consumed worldwide because of rich nutrient composition. The physical parameters of chickpea are crucial attributes for design of processing and classification systems. In this study, effects of seven different irrigation treatments (I1-rainfed, I2-pre-flowering single irrigation, I3-beginning of flowering single irrigation, I4-50% pod set single irrigation, I5-irrigation at 50% flowering and 50% pod fill, I6-irrigation before flowering and at 50% pod set, I7-full irrigation) on size, shape, mass, and color properties of chickpea seeds were investigated, and machine learning algorithms were used to estimate mass and color attributes of chickpea seeds. In terms of physical attributes, the best results were obtained in I1 and I5 irrigation treatments. According to the findings, among the irrigation treatments, I5 had the greatest mass, volume, geometric mean diameter, projected area with the values of 0.50 g, 394.86 cm³, 9.10 mm and 65.03 mm², respectively. In addition, I1 had the highest shape index and elongation as 1.33 and 1.34, respectively. The results showed that multilayer perceptron (MLP) had the greatest correlation coefficients for mass (0.9997), chroma (0.9998) hue angle (0.9998) and color index (0.9992). The MLP yielded better outcomes than random forest for both mass and color estimation. Additionally, single or couple irrigation treatment at different physiological stages instead of full irrigation treatment might be sufficient to improve the physical attributes of chickpea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea is sensitive to cold stress, especially at reproductive stage, resulting in flower and pod abortion that significantly reduces seed yield. In the present study, we evaluated (a) whether cold acclimation imparts reproductive cold tolerance in chickpea; (b) how genotypes with contrasting sensitivity respond to cold acclimation; and (c) the involvement of cryoprotective solutes and antioxidants in anthers and ovules in cold acclimation. Four chickpea genotypes with contrasting cold sensitivity (cold-tolerant: ICC 17258, ICC 16349; cold-sensitive: ICC 15567, GPF 2) were grown in an outdoor environment for 40 days in November (average maximum/minimum temperature 24.9/15.9 °C) before being subjected to cold stress (13/7 °C), with or without cold acclimation in a controlled environment of walk-in-growth chambers. The 42-d cold acclimation involved 7 d exposure at each temperature beginning with 23/15 °C, 21/13 °C, 20/12 °C, 20/10 °C, 18/8 °C, 15/8 °C (12 h/12 h day/night), prior to exposing the plants to cold stress (13/7 °C, 12 h/12 h day/night; 700 μmol m−2 s−1 light intensity; 65–70% relative humidity). Cold acclimation remarkably reduced low temperature-induced leaf damage (as membrane integrity, leaf water status, stomatal conductance, photosynthetic pigments, and chlorophyll fluorescence) under cold stress in all four genotypes. It only reduced anther and ovule damage in cold-tolerant genotypes due to improved antioxidative ability, measured as enzymatic (superoxide dismutase, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, and glutathione reductase) and non-enzymatic (ascorbate and reduced glutathione), solutes (particularly sucrose and γ-aminobutyric acid) leading to improving reproductive function and yield traits, whereas cold-sensitive genotypes were not responsive. The study concluded that cold tolerance in chickpea appears to be related to the better ability of anthers and ovules to acclimate, involving various antioxidants and cryoprotective solutes. This information will be useful in directing efforts toward increasing cold tolerance in chickpea.

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is an important source of food for people worldwide. In the current study, we studied its pollination biology with special reference to floral visitors along with their visitation rate, frequency and pollen load during 2012 and 2013. We also explored the effect of floral visitors on the capsule weight, seed weight, seed numbers and seed germination. Results revealed three bees, two wasps, five flies, one moth and three butterfly species on the flowers of chickpea. Apis dorsata , A. florea , Amegilla sp. and Eristalinus aeneus were the major species with 434–474, 223–311, 69–74 and 81–136 individuals, respectively in both years. Floral visitors differed significantly in term of visitation frequency with A. florea as the most frequent visitor (9.13–9.86 visits/flower/5 min) followed by E. aeneus (5.43–5.58 visits/flower/5 min) and A. dorsata (1.72–2.31 visits/flower/5 min) in both years. Similarly, A. florea had statistically highest visitation rate (16.85–19.99 flowers visited/min) followed by E. aeneus (9.73–10.68 flowers visited/min). A. dorsata had significantly higher pollen load on its body (84629–85,104 pollen grains) followed by A. florea (64940–65,135 pollen grains) and Amegilla sp. (64020–65,120 pollen grains). The open-pollinated flowers had significantly higher capsule weight (0.27 ± 0.01 g), seed weight (0.18 ± 0.01 g), seed numbers (1.67 ± 0.07 seeds) and seed germination (95 ± 1.38%) as compared to flowers deprived of pollinators in cages. The results suggested A. florea , A. dorsata and E. aeneus could be effective pollinators of chickpea. Hence these three species can be properly utilized on commercial scale to increase crop yield. Unlabelled Image • Chickpea is an important pulse crop. • Insects are important pollinators of many crop plants. • Apis dorsata , A. florea , Amegilla sp. and Eristalinus aeneus are efficient floral visitors. • Higher capsule and seed weight, seed numbers and germination percentage in open pollinated flowers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of dietary replacement of soybean meal (SBM) with two different protein sources (cowpea [CWP] and chickpea [CKP]) on growth performance (GP), blood parameters and breast meat fatty acids (FA) content were evaluated. A total of 780 one-d-old broiler chicks (Cobb 500) were allocated, over 2 growth phases (starter, 0–21 d; finisher, 22–42 d), to 5 dietary treatments as follow: (1) a corn-SBM basal diet as control; (2) 10% raw cowpea; (3) 20% raw cowpea; (4) 10% raw chickpea and (5) 20% raw chickpea. The results indicated that CWP and CKP diets conducted to similar GP (body weight, body weight gain, feed intake and feed conversion ratio) when compared to the SBM diet, but changes in the content of blood parameters were observed. Glucose and total cholesterol decreased significantly in birds fed CWP (p<.0001) and CKP (p<.001) diet. Also, the use of CWP and CKP had a significant effect on the content of breast muscle FA, especially for alfa-linolenic (p <.0001), eicosapentaenoic (p<.0001), docosapentaenoic (p=.034) and docosahexaenoic (p =.003), which were higher than those fed SBM diet. In addition, there was a significant interaction between the protein source and the inclusion level (S × L) for the majority of the FA's. Based on the results obtained, it can be concluded that CWP and CKP seeds represent an interesting alternative protein sources, which can improve broilers performance, health status and breast fatty acids composition. Cowpea (CWP) and chickpea (CKP) can be used as replacement for soybean meal in broiler chickens diets, at inclusion levels up to 200 g/kg. Dietary use of CWP and CKP decreased plasma cholesterol and glucose concentration. Use of CWP and CKP in broilers diets positively modified breast meat fatty acids, especially α-linolenic acid, eicosapentaenoic or docosahexaenoic acids with potential benefits to human nutrition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is the second largest pulse crop cultivated worldwide. Ascochyta blight caused by Ascochyta rabiei is the major constraints to chickpea production across the continent including Pakistan. The pathogen Ascochyta rabiei is highly variable. Chickpea cultivars contain limited resistance to pathogen due to their potential for sexual recombination. Investigations were conducted for the identification resistant sources against A.rabiei. Sixty-six chickpea accessions and one susceptible variety were tested against A. rabiei. However, four accessions TG-1427, Star Channa, PARB913/CH03 and PARB913/CH02 showed resistant reaction, eight accessions moderately resistant reaction, eleven accessions developed moderately susceptible reaction whereas twenty two accessions recorded susceptible reaction, moreover remaining twenty one accessions exhibited highly susceptible reaction with maximum ratings = 9. Ten fungicides were tested against A. rabiei at three concentrations (3g, 5g and 7g/liter of water) on the susceptible cultivars (AUG-424). Application of Pyraclostrobin and Azoxystrobin proved most effective and expressed minimum disease incidence 8.37 and 10.97% respectively on comparison to control 77.31%. Results of the present investigation will help the farming community and researchers for timely management of A. blight. Resistant accessions that were identified in this study will be useful for developing blight resistant cultivars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is the second most important edible food grain legume, widely grown all over the world. However, the cultivation and production of chickpea are mainly affected by the Ascochyta blight (AB) disease, which causes losses of up to 100% in areas with high humidity and warm temperature conditions. Various screening methods are used in the selection of chickpea genotypes for resistance to AB disease. These methods are natural field condition (NFC), artificial epidemic field condition (AEC), markerassisted selection (MAS), and real-time PCR (RT-PCR). The study was conducted with 88 chickpea test genotypes between the 2014 and 2016 growing seasons. The results of the screening were used to sort the genotypes into three categories: susceptible (S), moderately resistant (MR), and resistant (R). Using MAS screening, 13, 21, and 54 chickpea genotypes were identified as S, MR, and R, respectively. For RT-PCR screening, 39 genotypes were S, 31 genotypes were MR, and 18 genotypes were R. In the AEC method for NFC screening, 7, 17, and 64 genotypes were S, MR, and R, while 74 and 6 genotypes were S and MR, and 8 genotypes were R-AB disease. As a result of screening chickpea genotypes for AB disease, it was determined that the most effective method was artificial inoculation (AEC) under field conditions. In the study, Azkan, ICC3996, Tüb-19, and Tüb-82 were determined as resistant within all methods for Pathotype 1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is the third most important pulse crop produced after dry bean and peas in the world. Amongst pulses, chickpea is the major crop in India but for international market the quality of this crop has to be improved which may be possible by evaluation of different planting techniques. No systematic research and adequate technologies have been reported in Punjab on intercropping of different crops in chickpea. The current study aimed to find out the effect of different intercrops on growth and yield of bed planted chickpea based intercropping systems. Methods: A field experiment was carried out during the rabi season of 2017 and 2018 to evaluate the productivity and economic viability of bed planted chickpea based intercropping systems. The experiment was laid out in a randomized block design consisting of four replications with thirteen treatments. Result: Results showed that sole chickpea recorded highest seed yield and it was statistically at par with seed yield that obtained under chickpea + oats fodder (2:1), chickpea + oats fodder (4:1) and chickpea + linseed (4:1) intercropping systems. However, oilseed rape and barley as intercrops showed adverse effect on yield and yield attributes of chickpea. Chickpea + oats fodder in 2:1 row ratio recorded highest chickpea equivalent yield of 24.07 and 24.77 q/ha and system productivity of 15.96 and 15.60 kg/ha/day during 2017 and 2018, respectively. Higher net returns (Rs. 63098 and 70924/ha), benefit cost ratio (1.47 and 1.63) and production efficiency (417.9 and 446.1 Rs/ha/day) were also recorded in chickpea + oats fodder (2:1) intercropping system over sole chickpea (Rs. 44862 and 53769/ha and 1.21 and 1.41) during both the years. Chickpea + oats fodder (4:1), chickpea + linseed (2:1) and chickpea + linseed (4:1) also recorded significantly higher chickpea equivalent yield, net returns and benefit cost ratio as compared to sole chickpea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpeas are more sustainable than other food systems and have high a nutritional value, especially regarding their vitamin composition. One of the main vitamins in chickpeas is vitamin B6, which is very important for several human metabolic functions. Since chickpeas are consumed after cooking, our goal was to better understand the role of leaching (diffusion) and thermal degradation of vitamin B6 in chickpeas during hydrothermal processing. Kinetics were conducted at four temperatures, ranging from 25 to 85 °C, carried out for 4 h in an excess of water for the diffusion kinetics, or in hermetic bags for the thermal degradation kinetics. Thermal degradation was modeled according to a first-order reaction, and diffusion was modeled according to a modified version of Fick's second law. Diffusivity constants varied from 4.76 × 10−14 m2/s at 25 °C to 2.07 × 10−10 m2/s at 85 °C; the temperature had an impact on both the diffusivity constant and the residual vitamin B6. The kinetic constant ranged from 9.35 × 10−6 at 25 °C to 54.9 × 10−6 s−1 at 85 °C, with a lower impact of the temperature. In conclusion, vitamin B6 is relatively stable to heat degradation; loss is mainly due to diffusion, especially during shorter treatment times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea is one of the most important pulse crops worldwide, being an excellent source of protein. It is grown under rain-fed conditions averaging yields of 1 t/ha, far from its potential of 6 t/ha under optimum conditions. The combined effects of heat, cold, drought, and salinity affect species productivity. In this regard, several physiological, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms are reviewed to confer tolerance to abiotic stress. A large collection of nearly 100,000 chickpea accessions is the basis of breeding programs, and important advances have been achieved through conventional breeding, such as germplasm introduction, gene/allele introgression, and mutagenesis. In parallel, advances in molecular biology and high-throughput sequencing have allowed the development of specific molecular markers for the genus Cicer, facilitating marker-assisted selection for yield components and abiotic tolerance. Further, transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics have permitted the identification of specific genes, proteins, and metabolites associated with tolerance to abiotic stress of chickpea. Furthermore, some promising results have been obtained in studies with transgenic plants and with the use of gene editing to obtain drought-tolerant chickpea. Finally, we propose some future lines of research that may be useful to obtain chickpea genotypes tolerant to abiotic stress in a scenario of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is a major pulse crop worldwide, renowned for its nutritional richness and adaptability. Weeds are the main biotic factor deteriorating chickpea yield and nutritional quality, especially Asphodelus tenuifolius Cav. The present study concerns a two-year (2018–19 and 2019–20) field trial aiming at evaluating the effect of weed management on chickpea grain quality. Several weed management practices have been here implemented under a factorial randomized complete block design, including the application of four herbicides [bromoxynil (C7H3Br2NO) + MCPA (Methyl-chlorophenoxyacetic acid) (C9H9ClO3), fluroxypyr + MCPA, fenoxaprop-p-ethyl (C18H16ClNO5), pendimethalin (C13H19N3O4)], the extracts from two allelopathic weeds (Sorghum halepense and Cyperus rotundus), two mulches (wheat straw and eucalyptus leaves), a combination of A. tenuifolius extract and pendimethalin, and an untreated check (control). Chickpea grain quality was measured in terms of nitrogen, crude protein, crude fat, ash, and oil content. The herbicides pendimethalin (Stomp 330 EC (emulsifiable concentrate) in pre-emergence at a rate of 2.5 L ha−1) and fenoxaprop-p-ethyl (Puma Super 7.5 EW (emulsion in water) in post-emergence at a rate of 1.0 L ha−1), thanks to A. tenuifolius control, showed outstanding performance, providing the highest dietary quality of chickpea grain. The herbicides Stomp 330 EC, Buctril Super 40 EC, Starane-M 50 EC, and Puma Super 7.5 EW provided the highest levels of nitrogen. Outstanding increases in crude protein content were observed with all management strategies, particularly with Stomp 330 EC and Puma Super 7.5 EW (+18% on average). Ash content was highly elevated by Stomp 330 EC and Puma Super 7.5 EW, along with wheat straw mulching, reaching levels of 2.96% and 2.94%. Crude fat content experienced consistent elevations across all treatments, with the highest improvements achieved by Stomp 330 EC, Puma Super 7.5 EW, and wheat straw mulching applications. While 2018–19 displayed no significant oil content variations, 2019–20 revealed the highest oil content (5.97% and 5.96%) with herbicides Stomp 330 EC and Puma Super 7.5 EW, respectively, followed by eucalyptus leaves mulching (5.82%). The results here obtained are of key importance in the agricultural and food sector for the sustainable enhancement of chickpea grain's nutritional quality without impacting the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum), one of the major pulse crops in India, endured extreme reduction in production due to various abiotic and biotic stresses. Endophytic bacteria residing in the nodules and roots of chickpea plants enable host in combating these stresses. Twenty one endophytic bacteria isolated from nodules and roots of chickpea were screened for multiple plant growth promoting traits like ammonia, organic acid, siderophore, hydrogen cyanide (HCN) and phytohormone indole acetic acid (IAA) production. Out of these, 86% isolates produced ammonia, around 50% isolates produced organic acid, HCN and siderophore, 29% isolates produced ACC (1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid) deaminase, while only 14% isolates solubilized phosphate. Interestingly, all the isolates were able to produce IAA ranging from 11.6–85.2 μg/ml, isolate CPJN 13 being the maximum IAA producer (85.5±2.33 μg/ml). Isolate CPJN13 was selected for IAA optimization studies. The yield of IAA increased up to 4 fold i.e. 331±4.96 μg/ml at optimized conditions. IAA production was also confirmed by TLC and HPLC analysis of crude IAA extract. The application of CPJN13 on chickpea seedlings resulted in significant increase in plant growth parameters. The 16S rDNA sequencing of CPJN13 revealed its similarity with Pseudomonas lini strain and submitted to NCBI with accession number MF574502. To best of our knowledge, this is the first report of the presence of P. lini as endophyte in chickpea nodules. The results of this study imply that the endophytic P. lini has a potential role to enhance the plant growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chickpea is a pivotal grain legume crop and is grown in rain-fed conditions where its production has been challenged by drought. Methods: To understand precisely the root-based responses to well-watered (WW) and water-stressed (WS) treatments, 14 chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) genotypes differing in drought tolerance and biomass were studied in 100-cm cylinders under glasshouse conditions. Result: The genotypes exhibited significant variations in rooting depths ranging from 84.5 to 100.3 cm and 78.7 to 121 cm in WW and WS treatments, respectively and root biomasses varied from 0.23 to 1.01 g and 0.38 to 0.91 g. The average root biomass of droughttolerant genotypes was 61.3% in WS treatment and 64.4% in WW treatment higher than that of drought-sensitive genotypes. Moreover, genotype with high biomass revealed greater root biomass and deeper rooting than the genotype with low biomass in both treatments. The root biomass in the deeper soil profile differed between drought-tolerant and drought-sensitive genotypes and was generally greater in WS compared to WW treatment. Overall, screening the variability in root features of chickpea genotypes with varying levels of drought tolerance and biomass contributes to new insights for understanding drought adaptation mechanisms and the improvement of new cultivars with superior root traits in breeding programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Legume crops play a key role in hastening both the agroecological and protein transition and improving the sustainability of cropping systems. Among legumes, chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is a valuable source of protein, fibers, and nutraceutical compounds, providing important agri-environmental effects. Nevertheless, few studies have explored the effect of genetic characteristics on production and quality traits in chickpea. Chickpea landraces seem particularly interesting for their positive agronomic and quality characteristics, opening the door for innovation in sustainable food systems. Thus, the present study aimed to characterize two chickpea Tuscan landraces (Rugoso della Maremma and Cappuccio della Valtiberina) in comparison with widely distributed commercial chickpea varieties (Ares, Maragià, Pascià, Principe, Reale, Sultano, and Vittoria). Our findings highlighted positive agronomic traits of landraces in terms of seed yield and yield components, demonstrating performance that is either superior or comparable to commercial varieties. Notably, Cappuccio della Valtiberina showed the highest 1000-seed weight (425.50 g), followed by Maragià (432.92 g), Principe (392.32 g), and Reale (382.79 g), and the highest harvest index (0.55), similar to Reale (0.55). Overall, landraces achieved 18.75% higher yields than commercial varieties. Regarding chickpea quality, landraces exhibited profiles comparable to those of commercial genotypes in terms of protein and oil content, as well as nutraceuticals. Interestingly, the two landraces had the most favorable ω-6/ω-3 ratios (Cappuccio della Valtiberina, 12.45; Rugoso della Maremma, 13.71) among the genotypes except for Maragià (11.78), indicating better nutritional quality compared to commercial varieties (>14.00). These results demonstrated that landraces could offer promising prospects for future chickpea breeding programs, aiding in the selection of genotypes capable of adapting to changing growing conditions and supporting the development of sustainable food systems.

Soil salinity is a severe and expanding soil degradation problem that affects 80 million ha of arable lands globally. Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is very sensitive to saline conditions; the most susceptible genotypes may die in just 25 mM NaCl in hydroponic s. Approximately 8-10% yield loss in chickpea production is estimated due to salinity stress. However, it is still not established why chickpea is so susceptible to salt affection. Salinity (NaCl) impedes germination of seeds, though chickpea varieties considerably differ from one another in this respect. Some chickpea genotypes are more tolerant in the stage of germination, tolerating even 320 mM NaCl. The reasons of this variation are unrevealed; there is a shortage of knowledge about the germination abilities of chickpea genotypes in saline conditions. Nevertheless, the effect of salt stress on vegetative growth can be analysed in hydroponics, in pot or field conditions, regardless the experimental environment, the ranking of genotypes regarding salt resistance is coherent. Chickpea genotypes can be different in their ability to retain water, maybe under salt affection; the more salt tolerant lines can maintain higher water content in the shoots, while the more sensitive ones cannot. The identification of salt tolerant chickpea landraces based on developing genetic variability is a suitable strategy to combat against salinity problems arising in arid and semi-arid areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phytoplasma is an obligate prokaryote infecting a wide array of crops such as urdbean, sesame, brinjal and many other vegetable crops in India. Several workers have noticed the recent outbreak of phytoplasma disease in several pulse crops. A study was conducted to identify the phytoplasma infection in chickpea from Tamil Nadu. The average disease incidence due to phytoplasma was recorded with a range of 5-20% under field condition. The infected plants produced symptoms including stunting of plants, bushy appearance, reduced leaf size, chlorosis and reddening of infected leaves. The association of phytoplasma with these symptoms was confirmed by nested PCR assay using the universal primers P1/P7 and R16F2n/R16R2. The infected samples were amplified with an amplicon size of 1.2 kb and sequence analysis showed more than 99% similarity with phytoplasma belongs to Candidatus Phytoplasma aurantifolia. Phylogenetic analysis of nucleotide sequences confirmed the chickpea phyllody phytoplasma forms a single subgroup with other Indian isolates of various crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Among the pulse crop world chick pea known as important pulse crop which is grown and utilized in the world. This crop nutritionally rich in the carbohydrates, protein which has superior quality protein than the other pulse crop. This pea consists of lots of essential amino acids except the sulphur containing amino acids. So that it is a good combination of diet with the cereals. In the plants mostly carbohydrates stored in the starch form but also followed by oligosaccharides and reducing and non-reducing sugars. In this crop lots of nutritionally rich substances but it has low amount of fats and large amount of unsaturated fatty acid which is very beneficial to the heart patient. The minerals which are present in chick pea are Calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and especially potassium. The vitamins which are present in this pulse such as riboflavin, niacin, thiamin, folate and the vitamin A precursor, ß-carotene. The pulses also have anti-nutritional factors which can be minimized by the using of lots of cooking methods. Methods: Through NIRS-2500 evaluated twenty samples of chick pea. It is an instrument through which Near Infrared (NIR) analysis a spectroscopic technique that makes use of the naturally occurring electromagnetic spectrum. This works in the region of the spectrum defined by wavelengths between 700nm and 2500nm. All the cultivars were found to cluster in major four groups on the basis of principal component analysis. The result showed the diversity between nutritional and antinutritional factors in the cultivars that could be further used by plant breeders to develop superior genotypes. The chick pea has lots of advantages which cure the several diseases such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, digestive diseases and some cancers. Result: Here we study twenty samples of chick pea in which the biochemical composition of this crop consists of protein was varied from 22.12% to 24.42%, sulphur containg amino acids ranged from 0.15 to 1.25% and Tryptophan was ranged from 0.63 to 1.38% which was analyzed by NIRS-2500. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cicer arietinum L. (Bengal gram, chickpea) is one of the major pulse crops and an important part of traditional diets in Asia, Africa, and South America. The present study was conducted to determine the changes in total isoflavones during sprouting (0, 3, and 7 days) along with the effect of two precursor supplementations, p-coumaric acid (p-CA) and L-phenylalanine (Phe), in C. arietinum. It was observed that increasing sprouting time up to the seventh day resulted in ≈1282 mg 100 g−1 isoflavones, which is approximately eight times higher than chickpea seeds. The supplementation of Phe did not affect the total length of sprouts, whereas the supplementation of p-CA resulted in stunted sprouts. On the third day of supplementation with p-CA (250 mg L−1), the increase in the total phenolic content (TPC) (80%), daidzein (152%), and genistin (158%) contents were observed, and further extending the supplementation reduced the growth of sprouts. On the seventh day of supplementation with Phe (500 mg L−1), the increase in TPC by 43% and genistin content by 74% was observed compared with non-treated sprouts; however, the total isoflavones content was found to be 1212 mg 100 g−1. The increased TPC was positively correlated with the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity (r = 0.787) and ferric-reducing antioxidant potential (FRAP) (r = 0.676) activity. This study suggests that chickpea sprouts enriched in TPC and antioxidants can be produced by the appropriate quantity of precursor supplementation on a particular day. The results indicated major changes in the phytochemical content, especially daidzein and genistin. It was also concluded that the consumption of 100 g of seventh-day sprouts provided eight times higher amounts of isoflavones in comparison to chickpea seeds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is a pulse crop valued for its high protein content, grown in semi-arid tropics and Mediterranean regions. Its yield remains affected by biotic and abiotic stresses with drought alone being responsible for up to 50% annual loss of yield. Transcriptome analysis of a sensitive and a tolerant cultivar of chickpea has been done earlier to unravel the molecular basis for drought and salinity stress responses. In the present study, we performed transcriptome analysis of two drought-tolerant genotypes, BG-362 and P-256, under polyethylene glycol-simulated drought stress to decipher the genes and pathways that are commonly regulated in these genotypes. RNA-Seq using Illumina platform generated 152 million high-quality reads. Reference-guided assembly of genome yielded a total of 37,943 transcripts representing 22,701 genes. Among the 1624 genes that were observed to be differentially expressed under drought, 97 genes were common in both the genotypes. These included the upregulated genes, such as probable mannitol dehydrogenase, serine hydroxymethyltransferase 4-like, 17.5 kDa class I heat shock protein-like, cytochrome P450 81E8-like, and galactinol-sucrose galactosyltransferase-like, and downregulated genes, such as probable xyloglucan endotransglucosylase/hydrolase protein 23, abscisic acid 8′-hydroxylase 1-like, Calmodulin-like protein 11, and proline dehydrogenase 2 mitochondrial-like genes. A major finding was the involvement of transcription factors, including AP2-EREBP, bHLH, bZIP, C3H, MYB, NAC, WRKY, and MADS. The present study is the first comparative analysis of RNA-Seq data for two drought-tolerant chickpea genotypes. These findings would help in improving drought tolerance across chickpea genotypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is one of the most important foods over the world. As it seen on the other legumes, chickpea protein is the main factor to consuming as human diet. Nutritional components are the other factors to presentation of quality. In the study, correlation analyze among the nutritional components was evaluated on the field released chickpea which was subjected to foliar applied humic acid doses in 2013 under Altınekin Town/Konya ecological conditions. Result of the study showed positive and significant relations between pod/plant, protein yield and protein ratio while negative-significant relations between magnesium and protein ratio, as well. For protein yield, positive and significant relations were found with pod/plant, plant height, seed yield and protein ratio. Consequently, agronomical and quality related characteristics have significant relations in chickpeas. Future aspects can be focused on the mentioned quality related characteristics to produce enhanced quality in chickpeas which is essential for sustainability food security and production of functional foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research was conducted at the experimental field of Polatli Agricultural farms to the General Directorate of Farm Enterprises (TIGEM) in 2008 and 2009 for determination the effect of four different tillage systems on yield and yield components of a chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) variety under Central Anatolian conditions of Turkey. Traditional, minimum (reduced), no-till (direct seeding) and no-till + herbicide treatments were applied in the experiment. According to the results of the research tillage systems constituted significant differences for seed yield, plant height, legume number per plant, biological yield per plant, harvest index and 1000-seed weight. Average seed yield values of chickpea in the traditional, minimum, no-till and no-till + herbicide treatments were 1558.25 kg.ha-1, 1240.10 kg.ha-1, 1637.30 kg.ha-1 and 1874.85 kg.ha-1, respectively. Relationships between yields' data and tillage systems were R²2=0.469** and 0.412** indicating a significant influence of tillage systems. In this way, the results revealed that direct seeding can be offered for chickpea cultivation in Central Anatolian Region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]