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Functional properties in andean native tubers: A review

Abstract:

Chimborazo in Ecuador is located in the Middle Inter-Andean region. People from this region have utilized native tubers for their nutritional and medicinal properties since pre-hispanic time. The health-related properties of Andean tuber crops claimed from folklore use could be in part attributed to the antioxidants present in these crops. Currently there is a high interest in the search for edible plants as novel sources of health-promoting phytochemicals. Andean crops show variability in colors, forms and sizes, and also in primary nutrient constituents and bioactive secondary metabolites derived of a great genetic diversity, unfortunately poorly studied. The objective of this work is to review the existing data on the components with functional properties in the native tubers. The information extracted in this paper should serve to stimulate an increase in the evaluation of these crops as sources of functional foods, as well as to introduce a new research program in the Escuela Superior Politecnica de Chimborazo (ESPOCH).