Bio-morphological traits, chemical composition, and antioxidant activity of two accessions from sainfoin seeds

The importance of some underutilized legume crops in creating sustainable bioeconomy is increasing constantly in the 21st century. Apart from the commonly used beans, the most of them are mainly utilized as animal forages. Such crop is sainfoin which has the ability to resist droughts and adapt to a wide range of climatic conditions. Hence, it is substantial to be performed detailed studies on the genetic diversity of the plant as well as to be established the main components derived from the sainfoin seeds. Therefore, the aim of the present study was the examination of the variability of some important bio-morphological traits of two sainfoin accessions - Onobrychis transcaucasica Grossh. and Onobrychis viciifolia Scop., as well as revealing the chemical composition and antioxidant activity of the seeds. The highest variability for both species was the trait top leaflet width. The amount of glyceride oil, total proteins, carbohydrates (water-soluble sugars, starch and fibers), ash and moisture of the seeds were determined. Total phenolics and flavonoids, as well as their individual content in the sainfoin seeds revealed them as a potent source of bioactive components. The antioxidant activity was examined using four methods based on different mechanisms (2,2 '-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), 2,2diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), ferric reducing antioxidant ability (FRAP) and cupric reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC)). The results of this study have possibilities for enrichment the information on ex situ collection of O. transcaucasica and O. viciifolia accessions. They could be successfully used in the improvement of breeding programs and the seeds might have possible application for different industrial purposes because of their chemical composition.