Eggplant
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For the color, see Eggplant (color).
| Eggplant | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Asterids |
| Order: | Solanales |
| Family: | Solanaceae |
| Genus: | Solanum |
| Species: | S. melongena |
| Binomial name | |
| Solanum melongena L. | |
| Synonyms | |
The nightshade known in North America as the eggplant, Solanum melongena, is a species of flowering plant known in French and British English as the aubergine. Also known as the brinjal, brinjal eggplant, melongene, or guinea squash, it is a member of the family Solanaceae. It bears a fruitof the same name, eggplant or aubergine, widely used in cooking, most notably moussaka and ratatouille. As a member of the genus Solanum, it is related to both the tomato and the potato. It was domesticated in India from the wild nightshade, the thorn or bitter apple, S. incanum.[1][2][3]
Health properties
| Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |
|---|---|
| Energy | 104 kJ (25 kcal) |
| Carbohydrates | 5.88 g |
| - Sugars | 3.53 g |
| - Dietary fiber | 3 g |
| Fat | 0.18 g |
| Protein | 0.98 g |
| Thiamine (vit. B1) | 0.039 mg (3%) |
| Riboflavin (vit. B2) | 0.037 mg (3%) |
| Niacin (vit. B3) | 0.649 mg (4%) |
| Pantothenic acid (B5) | 0.281 mg (6%) |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.084 mg (6%) |
| Folate (vit. B9) | 22 μg (6%) |
| Vitamin C | 2.2 mg (3%) |
| Vitamin E | 0.3 mg (2%) |
| Vitamin K | 3.5 μg (3%) |
| Calcium | 9 mg (1%) |
| Iron | 0.23 mg (2%) |
| Magnesium | 14 mg (4%) |
| Manganese | 0.232 mg (11%) |
| Phosphorus | 24 mg (3%) |
| Potassium | 229 mg (5%) |
| Zinc | 0.16 mg (2%) |
| Link to USDA Database entry Percentages are relative to US recommendations for adults. Source: USDA Nutrient Database | |
A 1998 study at the Institute of Biology of São Paulo State University, Brazil, found eggplant juice to significantly reduce weight, plasma cholesterol levels, and aortic cholesterol content in hypercholesterolemic rabbits.[19]
The results of a 2000 study on humans suggested S. melongena infusion had a modest and transitory effect, no different from diet and exercise.[20]
A 2004 study on humans at the Heart Institute of the University of São Paulo found no effects at all and did not recommend eggplant as an alternative tostatins.[21]
The nicotine content of aubergines, though low in absolute terms, is higher than any other edible plant, with a concentration of 0.01 mg per 100 g. The amount of nicotine consumed by eating eggplant or any other food is negligible compared to being in the presence of a smoker.[22] On average, 9 kg (20 lbs) of eggplant contains about the same amount of nicotine as a cigarette.
[edit]Allergies
Case reports of itchy skin or mouth, mild headache, and stomach upset after handling or eating eggplant have been reported anecdotally and published in medical journals (see also oral allergy syndrome). A 2008 study of a sample of 741 people in India, where eggplant is commonly consumed, found nearly 10% reported some allergic symptoms after consuming eggplant, while 1.4% showed symptoms within less than two hours.[23] Contact dermatitis from eggplant leaves[24] and allergy to eggplant flower pollen[25] have also been reported. Individuals who are atopic (genetically predisposed to developing certain allergic hypersensitivity reactions) are more likely to have a reaction to eggplant, which may be because eggplant is high inhistamines. A few proteins and at least one secondary metabolite have been identified as potential allergens.[26] Cooking eggplant thoroughly seems to preclude reactions in some individuals, but at least one of the allergenic proteins survives the cooking process.
[edit]Varieties
- Solanum melongena var. esculentum common eggplant, including white varieties, with many cultivars[27]
- Solanum melongena var. depressum dwarf eggplant
- Solanum melongena var. serpentium snake eggplant
[edit]Genetically engineered variety
Bt brinjal is a transgenic eggplant which has a gene from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis inserted into it. This variety was designed to give the plant resistance against lepidopteran insects like the brinjal fruit and shoot borer (Leucinodes orbonalis) and fruit borer (Helicoverpa armigera).[28]
On 9 February 2010, the Indian Environment Minister, Jairam Ramesh, imposed a moratorium on the cultivation of Bt brinjal.[29] His decision was made after protest from several groups responding to regulatory approval of the cultivation of Bt brinjal in October, 2009. Ramesh stated the moratorium will last "for as long as it is needed to establish public trust and confidence".
[edit]Synonyms
The eggplant is quite often featured in the older scientific literature under the junior synonyms S. ovigerum and S. trongum. Several other now-invalid names have been uniquely applied to it:[30]
- Melongena ovata Mill.
- Solanum album Noronha
- Solanum insanum L.
- Solanum longum Roxb.
- Solanum melanocarpum Dunal
- Solanum melongenum St.-Lag.
- Solanum oviferum Salisb.
- Prachi Salisb.
A number of subspecies and varieties have been named, mainly by Dikii, Dunal, and (invalidly) by Sweet. Names for various eggplant types, such asagreste, album, divaricatum, esculentum, giganteum, globosi, inerme, insanum, leucoum, luteum, multifidum, oblongo-cylindricum, ovigera, racemiflorum, racemosum, ruber, rumphii, sinuatorepandum, stenoleucum, subrepandum, tongdongense, variegatum, violaceum and viride, are not considered to refer to anything more than cultivar groups at best. On the other hand, Solanum incanum and cockroach berry (S. capsicoides), other eggplant-like nightshades described by Linnaeus and Allioni, respectively, were occasionally considered eggplant varieties, but this is not correct.[30]
The eggplant has a long history of taxonomic confusion with the scarlet and Ethiopian eggplants, known as gilo and nakati, and described by Linnaeus as S. aethiopicum. The eggplant was sometimes considered a variety violaceum of that species. S. violaceum of de Candolle applies to Linnaeus' S. aethiopicum. There is an actual S. violaceum, an unrelated plant described by Ortega, which used to include Dunal's S. amblymerum and was often confused with the same author's S. brownii.[30]
Like the potato and Solanum lichtensteinii, but unlike the tomato, which then was generally put in a different genus, the eggplant was also described asS. esculentum, in this case once more in the course of Dunal's work. He also recognized varieties aculeatum, inerme and subinerme at that time. Similarly, H.C.F. Schuhmacher and Peter Thonning named the eggplant as S. edule, which is also a junior synonym of sticky nightshade (S. sisymbriifolium). Scopoli's S. zeylanicum refers to the eggplant, and that of Blanco to S. lasiocarpum.[30]
No comments:
Post a Comment