Assessment of variation in nutrient concentration and antioxidant activity of raw seeds, sprouts and microgreens of Vigna radiata(L.) Wilczek and Cicer arietinum L

Growing public concerns about health have prompted the search for novel food sources. Sprout and microgreen of legumes act as a novel food source because their nutrient content is concentrated which implies that they contain higher vitamins, minerals and antioxidant levels than the same quantity of mature greens. The current study is focused on the raw seeds, sprouts and microgreens of Vigna radiata(L.)Wilczek and Cicer arietinum L. species as a potential source of value added food ingredients. The samples analyzed for nutritional profiling and free radical scavenging activity(DPPH asaay) .The samples were prepared in both aqueous and alcoholic extract and was analyzed for total soluble sugars, protein, total flavonoid content, total phenol content, total tannin content, total free amino acids, vitamin C and A etc. Radical scavenging activity was determined by spectrophotometric based on the reduction of the free radical 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH).The results shows that the concentration of phenolic content and vitamins increased in the sequence: raw seeds, sprouts and microgreen. The increased concentration of phenolics in microgreen of both Vigna radiata(L.)Wilczek and Cicer arietinum L. lead to high percentage of free radical scavenging activity. Our research proved that microgreens contain higher concentration of vitamins and high antioxidant activity compared to raw seeds and sprouts.