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Molecules 2012, 17(9), 11139-11145; doi:10.3390/molecules170911139

Article

Proximate Composition, Nutritional Attributes and Mineral Composition of Peperomia pellucida L. (Ketumpangan Air) Grown in Malaysia

Der-Jiun Ooi ¹ , Shahid Iqbal ^1,2  and Maznah Ismail ^1,3,*

¹ Laboratory of Molecular Biomedicine, Institute of Bioscience, Universiti Putra Malaysia, UPM Serdang 43400, Selangor, Malaysia ² Department of Chemistry, University of Sargodha, Sargodha 40100, Pakistan ³ Department of Nutrition and Dietetic, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, UPM Serdang 43400, Selangor, Malaysia

* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Received: 19 July 2012; in revised form: 8 August 2012 / Accepted: 22 August 2012 / Published: 17 September 2012

(This article belongs to the Section Natural Products)

Download PDF Full-Text [184 KB, uploaded 17 September 2012 09:03 CEST]

Abstract: This study presents the proximate and mineral composition of Peperomia pellucida L., an underexploited weed plant in Malaysia. Proximate analysis was performed using standard AOAC methods and mineral contents were determined using atomic absorption spectrometry. The results indicated Peperomia pellucida to be rich in crude protein, carbohydrate and total ash contents. The high amount of total ash (31.22%) suggests a high-value mineral composition comprising potassium, calcium and iron as the main elements. The present study inferred that Peperomia pellucida would serve as a good source of protein and energy as well as micronutrients in the form of a leafy vegetable for human consumption.

Keywords: Peperomia pellucida; proximate composition; mineral profile

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