Variance analysis for nutritional components in Moringa oleifera Lam. leaves picked from different positions of branches

ObjectiveThe objective of the present study was to determine the nutritional components of Moringa oleifera Lam. leaf,explore the change rugulations of the nutritional components in leaf,and provide a theoretical basis for the production and processing of it.MethodThe main nutritional components of leaves from different positions of lateral branch,including protein,fat,crude fiber,mineral elements,vitamin C and amino acid,were measured and ana-lyzed using the methods detecting main nutritional components in food.ResultM. oleifera leaf was rich in essential nutrient. Moreover,protein content in sample 3(the 6th and 7th leaves)was 38.82 g/100 g,which was extremely significantly different from the other samples(P<0.01 ,the same below);crude fiber content in sample 5(the 10th and 11th leaves)was 9.00 g/100 g ,which was extremely significantly different from the other samples;fat content was the lowest(6.90 g/100 g)in sample 1(the 2nd and 3rd leaves),which was signifficantly different from sample 2(the 4th and 5th leaves )and sample 5(P<0.05,the same below). There was great difference in the content of mineral elements in M. oleifera leaf in which potassium and calcium contents were the most abundant. Their contents were between 8400.00-24000.00 μg/g. The contents of other mineral elements(magnesium,phosphorus,zinc,sodium,manganese,iron and cupper)were between 5.02-4000.00 μg/g. The contents of magnesium,sodium,manganese,iron and cupper increased first and then decreased as leaf position dropped,but phosphorus content showed an increasing trend,zinc content showed a downward trend. Vitamin C content showed a downward trend and the content was the highest in sample 1. Total amino acid content was the highest in sample 3(30.67 g/100 g),which was significantly different from other samples.ConclusionThe different positions have certain impacts on the content of nutritional components in leaves of M. oleifera. Based on the differences of nutritional com-ponents,leaves from different positions can be developed into different products.