Abstract
Bananas and plantains (Musa spp.) are an important staple and food security crop in sub‐Saharan Africa. In Uganda, where the consumption of East African highland banana (EAHB) is the highest in the world, the population suffers from a high incidence of vitamin A deficiency (VAD). Since the consumption of pro‐vitamin A carotenoids (pVAC) made available through the food staple can help alleviate these ailments, we set out to identify the most suitable banana variety to use in future biofortification strategies through genetic engineering. The study focussed on eight popular Musa cultivars grown in the heart of banana farming communities and across the three major agricultural zones of Uganda. The fruit pVAC concentration varied considerably within and across the cultivars tested. These variations could not be explained by the altitude nor the geographical location where these fruits were grown. More than 50% of the total carotenoids present in EAHB cultivars was found to comprise of α‐ and β‐carotene, while the retention of these compounds following traditional processing methods was at least 70%. Storage up to 14 days postharvest improved carotenoid accumulation up to 2.4‐fold in the cultivar Nakitembe. The technical challenge for a successful biofortification approach in Uganda using genetically modified EAHB lies in guaranteeing that the fruit pVAC content will invariably provide at least 50% of the estimated average requirement for vitamin A regardless of the growing conditions.
Highlights
Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is an important public health problem in developing parts of Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa in particular with an estimated 250 million preschool children being affected (WHO, 2009)
These staples are rich in starch but most are deficient in critical micronutrients such as pro-vitamin A carotenoids (pVAC) and, as a result, a diet based on them leads to the exacerbation of VAD in these regions
A total of 222 bunches were harvested from eight banana cultivars commonly grown across all major agricultural zones in the western, central, and eastern part of Uganda (Figure 1)
Summary
Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is an important public health problem in developing parts of Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa in particular with an estimated 250 million preschool children being affected (WHO, 2009). Fruit β-CE levels from the plantain “Gonja Nakatansese” were statistically higher (p ≤ .01) than any other cultivar tested with decreasing amounts present in the four EAHBs “Nakinyika,” “Nakitembe,” “Mpologoma,” and “Mbwazirume,” followed by “Bogoya,” “M9,” and “Sukali Ndiizi” (Figure 2a).
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