title: Purification of free arginine from chickpea (Cicer arietinum) seeds.
abstract: Chickpea is a grain legume widely consumed in the Mediterranean region and other parts of the world. Chickpea seeds are rich in proteins but they also contain a substantial amount of free amino acids, especially arginine. Hence chickpea may represent a useful source of free amino acids for nutritional or pharmaceutical purposes. Arginine is receiving great attention in recent years because it is the substrate for the synthesis of nitric oxide, an important signaling molecule involved in numerous physiological and pathological processes in mammals. In this work we describe a simple procedure for the purification of arginine from chickpea seeds, using nanofiltration technology and an ion-exchange resin, Amberlite IR-120. Arginine was finally purified by precipitation or crystallization, yielding preparations with purities of 91% and 100%, respectively. Chickpea may represent an affordable green source of arginine, and a useful alternative to production by fermentation or protein hydrolysis.
authors: Food Phytochemistry Department, Instituto de la Grasa (CSIC), Campus Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Carretera de Utrera km 1, 41013 Sevilla, Spain.
authors: Isabel
authors: I
authors: Cortés-Giraldo
authors: Food Phytochemistry Department, Instituto de la Grasa (CSIC), Campus Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Carretera de Utrera km 1, 41013 Sevilla, Spain.
authors: Cristina
authors: C
authors: Megías
authors: Food Phytochemistry Department, Instituto de la Grasa (CSIC), Campus Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Carretera de Utrera km 1, 41013 Sevilla, Spain.
authors: Manuel
authors: M
authors: Alaiz
authors: Food Phytochemistry Department, Instituto de la Grasa (CSIC), Campus Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Carretera de Utrera km 1, 41013 Sevilla, Spain.
authors: Julio
authors: J
authors: Girón-Calle
authors: Food Phytochemistry Department, Instituto de la Grasa (CSIC), Campus Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Carretera de Utrera km 1, 41013 Sevilla, Spain. Electronic address: jvioque@cica.es.
authors: Javier
authors: J
authors: Vioque
mesh_terms: D001120:Arginine / Q000737:chemistry*; D029863:Cicer / Q000737:chemistry*; D002523:Edible Grain / Q000378:metabolism; D011506:Proteins / Q000032:analysis*; D012639:Seeds / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D011506:Proteins; D001120:Arginine
keywords: Arginine; Chickpea; Free amino acids; Seed flour