Table 2.
Comparison of amino acid profiles of quinoa leaves with quinoa grains and other plants (g/100 g protein dry weight of the sample).
| Amino Acids | Leaves | Quinoa Grains | Maize a | Wheat a | Spinach Leaves b | School Children + |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EAAs: | ||||||
| Histidine | 1.90 ± 0.17 | 2.31 ± 0.25 * | 2.6 * | 2.0 | 2.5 * | 1.9 |
| Isoleucine | 4.13 ± 0.13 | 2.87 ± 0.13 * | 4.0 | 4.2 | 4.8 | 2.8 * |
| Lysine | 4.24 ± 0.16 | 3.81 ± 0.29 * | 2.9 * | 2.6 * | 7.3 ** | 4.4 |
| Threonine | 3.88 ± 0.10 | 2.62 ± 0.17 * | 3.8 | 2.8 * | 5.3 * | 2.8 * |
| Valine | 2.84 ± 0.14 | 3.81 ± 0.20 * | 5.0 * | 4.4 * | 6.1 * | 2.5 |
| NEAAS: | ||||||
| Tyrosine | 2.91 ± 0.04 | 2.19 ± 0.10 | 0.7 * | 0.2 ** | ND | 0.9 ** |
| Phenylalanine + tyrosine | 5.42 ± 0.36 | 3.31 ± 0.23 * | 8.6 ** | 8.2 ** | 11.1 ** | 2.2 * |
| Glutamic Acid | 16.12 ± 0.22 | 13.44 ± 0.40 * | 18.8 * | 29.5 ** | 11.7 * | |
| Aspartic Acid | 10.69 ± 0.28 | 7.68 ± 0.35 * | 6.9 * | 5.0 * | 9.9 | |
| Alanine | 10.41 ± 0.39 | 2.87 ± 0.35 ** | 7.3 * | 3.6 ** | 6.3 * | |
| Glycine | 8.90 ± 0.12 | 11.00 ± 0.40 * | 4.0 ** | 4.0 ** | 5.2 ** | |
| Arginine | 5.06 ± 0.08 | 6.50 ± 0.16 * | 4.2 * | 4.5 * | 6.4 * | |
| Proline | 4.49 ± 0.39 | 2.87 ± 0.12 * | 9.1 ** | 10.2 ** | 4.8 | |
| Serine | 4.05 ± 0.06 | 8.19 ± 0.10 * | 5.1 * | 4.8 | 4.8 | |
| Nutritional evaluation | ||||||
| EAA | 22.4 | 18.7 * | 26.90 * | 24.20 * | 37.10 ** | |
| NEAA | 63.3 | 55.0 * | 56.10 * | 61.80 * | 49.10 ** | |
| TAA | 85.7 | 73.8 * | 83.00 * | 86.00 | 86.20 | |
| EAA/TAA (%) | 26.2 | 25.4 | 32.41 * | 28.14 * | 43.04 ** | |
| NEAA/TAA (%) | 73.8 | 74.6 | 67.59 * | 71.86 | 56.96 ** | |
| EEA/NEAA (%) | 35.4 | 34.0 | 47.95 ** | 39.16 * | 75.56 ** | |
Mean ± standard deviation (n = 3), EAA = essential amino acid; NEAA = non-essential amino acid; TAA = total amino acid; ND = not detectable. ** highly significant; * significant; a Data according Koziol (1992) [16], b Data according Hanif et al. (2006) [17], + Data according Values from FAO (1985) [19].