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Research Journal of Medicinal Plants

Year: 2012 | Volume: 6 | Issue: 7 | Page No.: 466-488
DOI: 10.17311/rjmp.2012.466.488
Legumes Biofarming and Biopharmaceutical Sciences: A Review
Akbar Nikkhah

Abstract: The objective is to delineate and review prominent commercial and emerging biotechnopharmaceutical sciences that are state-of-art intersections of plant, human and animal ecologies. A special focus is placed on alfalfa as a bountiful legume from animal agriculture and medicinal perspectives. Crops are steadily and increasingly regarded as human health inducers. The new insights are changing and expanding plants prospective roles in plant and human ecologies form biotechnology and medicine perspectives. As such, more emphasis is placed on links between plant chemicals with post-modern human and animal health. Such plant-origin therapeutics include pharmaceuticals, multi-constituent botanical drugs, dietary supplements, functional foods and plant-derived recombinant proteins and vaccines. These compounds and products are expected to complement conventional pharmaceuticals for cure, prognosis and diagnosis of diseases, while improving the quality of agricultural crops. As a result, a more effective exploration of diverse phytochemicals may be developed. In addition, new biotechnologies enable manipulating plant’s capability in synthesizing natural products and substances. Advanced biotechnologies to generate preferential Biopharmaceuticals (BPC) are receiving increased research and commercial interests. However, the cost, safety and accessibility of such BPC are among the major challenges. Nonetheless, plant BPC could be inexpensive and potentially safe to produce and store. Vegetables and leguminous plants are the fitting examples. A main advantage of leguminous crops, namely alfalfa (Medicago sativa), is their immense biomass yield since they can be cropped several times a year. Leguminous plants contain phytoestrogens that encompass several compounds, such as flavonoids, isoflavonoids, coumestans and lignans. Legumes such as peas, soybeans and alfalfa can be used to produce plant-derived inexpensive monoclonal antibodies (plantibodies) for human and animal therapeutics. Due to the presence of a multitude of bioactive substances in legumes, further studies particularly involving nutrigenomics and metabolomics are required to specify such effects on human health indicators of particular BPC. Definitive Quantitative and qualitative dietary inclusion guidelines for foods with legume origins may become feasible for different age groups. These achievements will form new perspectives that will contribute to healthier and more viable plant-human-animal ecologies in the new era.

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How to cite this article
Akbar Nikkhah , 2012. Legumes Biofarming and Biopharmaceutical Sciences: A Review. Research Journal of Medicinal Plants, 6: 466-488.

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