Quantitative Determination of Nutritional and Anti-Nutritional Composition of Clove (Eugenia Caryophllata)

Herbs and spices have been used from time immemorial for flavouring, food preservation and medicinal purposes. The awareness of the benefits of plants in food as wealthy additives poses researchers to pursue for discovering the influence of such ingredients to the health of the human beings [1]. Spices and herbs are well known food ingredients, which enhances the flavour and aroma of the supplemented foods. Botanically, spices are one class of the aromatic plants; they are mainly present in the tropical provinces. Generally, spices could be either as seeds, flowers or leaves [2]. On the other hand, herbs are fragrant and nonwoody plants in which they are used in flavouring food dishes; the herbs could be leaves, stems or seeds. Nutritionally, the spices and herbs are significant in reducing the per oxidation of lipids, which are the changes (offflavour) in the nature and the chemical composition of lipids during the processing, preservation and the final preparation of foods [3]. Generally, spices and herbs prevent the lipid oxidation process due to the presence of natural antioxidants [4]. Spices and herbs have also antimicrobial properties that can help in the preservation of foods and more recently in animal feed. Nowadays, there is more pressure by consumers in food and feed industry in replacing synthetic preservatives by natural preservatives [5]. Antimicrobial compounds in food, whether or not processed, can increase the shelf life by reducing the growth of microorganisms or by reducing their viability [6]. The exact chemical composition of herbs and spices have been reported to be greatly influenced by many factors such as part of the plant used, its vegetative state, environmental conditions, harvesting technique, etc. [7]. It is against this background that this study aimed at characterizing the chemical and minerals composition of Eugenia caryophllata (Clove buds).


Introduction
Herbs and spices have been used from time immemorial for flavouring, food preservation and medicinal purposes. The awareness of the benefits of plants in food as wealthy additives poses researchers to pursue for discovering the influence of such ingredients to the health of the human beings [1]. Spices and herbs are well known food ingredients, which enhances the flavour and aroma of the supplemented foods. Botanically, spices are one class of the aromatic plants; they are mainly present in the tropical provinces. Generally, spices could be either as seeds, flowers or leaves [2]. On the other hand, herbs are fragrant and non-woody plants in which they are used in flavouring food dishes; the herbs could be leaves, stems or seeds. Nutritionally, the spices and herbs are significant in reducing the per oxidation of lipids, which are the changes (off-flavour) in the nature and the chemical composition of lipids during the processing, preservation and the final preparation of foods [3]. Generally, spices and herbs prevent the lipid oxidation process due to the presence of natural antioxidants [4]. Spices and herbs have also antimicrobial properties that can help in the preservation of foods and more recently in animal feed. Nowadays, there is more pressure by consumers in food and feed industry in replacing synthetic preservatives by natural preservatives [5]. Antimicrobial compounds in food, whether or not processed, can increase the shelf life by reducing the growth of microorganisms or by reducing their viability [6]. The exact chemical composition of herbs and spices have been reported to be greatly influenced by many factors such as part of the plant used, its vegetative state, environmental conditions, harvesting technique, etc. [7]. It is against this background that this study aimed at characterizing the chemical and minerals composition of Eugenia caryophllata (Clove buds).
Cloves are the immature unopened flower buds of the evergreen tree Eugenia caryophyllus, which belongs to the Myrtaceae family. Cloves are green or pink when they are picked, and need to be dried until they become brown before they can be stored and sold. They resemble tiny nails of about 1.5cm long and have a diameter of about 0.5cm. Cloves (Eugenia caryophllata) are used in cuisines all over the world as well as in the food, pharmaceutical, tobacco and cosmetics industries.

Materials and Methods
About 200g of the Eugenia caryophllata (Clove buds) were purchased from the local markets. It was ground to a fine powder using a laboratory mill to pass a 0.5mm sieve and kept at room temperature in plastic bags until analyzed.

Mineral analysis
The sample was ashed and the residue dissolved in hydrochloric acid and quantitatively transferred into a volumetric flask. The volume was made up to 50ml using distilled deionised water. The concentrations of the mineral elements (Ca, Na, K, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn and Zn) were determined using atomic absorption spectrophotometer according to the method outlined by the Williams [8]. Phosphorous was determined according to the procedure reported by Fiske and Subbarow [9].

Anti-nutritional analysis
Total tannins were determined colorimetrically as described in AOAC [10]. The method described by Day and Underwood [11] was adopted for the determination of oxalates and phytates. Whereas the gravimetric method of AOA [10] was employed to quantitatively determine saponins.

Proximate Composition
Data on the dry matter, ash, fat, protein, fibre and carbohydrates constituents in Eugenia caryophllata (Cloves bud) sample are shown in Table 1. The dry matter was determined to be about 85.2%. Data are mean of triplicate determinations±standard deviation the ash and fat contents were 12.6% and 16.2% respectively. The Moisture content was determined to be 14.8%, which agree with data reported previously. The protein level, Carbohydrate level and Fibre contents were determined to be 12.4%, 41.3% and 17.5% respectively. These results are comparable with those reported by Kirk and Sawyer [2].

Minerals composition
Minerals determination experiment was conducted to determine the nutritional value of Eugenia caryophllata (Cloves bud). Nine minerals had been inspected, which were calcium, sodium, potassium, cupper, iron, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese and zinc. These minerals are regarded as the most significant elements of a valuable food. were also found to be present in the sample. Iron Fe, Phosphorus P, Zinc Zn and Cupper Cu recorded the least with the following concentrations; 8.3mg/100g, 1.6mg/100g, 1.4mg/100g and 0.4mg/100g respectively. This implies that Eugenia caryophllata (Cloves bud) can be a good supplement for Calcium Ca, Potassium K and Magnesium Mg. This agrees with the study of Achinewa et al., [1] where they concluded that Eugenia caryophllata is rich in some micronutrients. The anti-nutritional composition of Eugenia caryophllata is presented in Table 3. Four factors which include tannins, saponins, oxalates and phytates were quantitatively determined.

Anti-nutritional composition
Data are mean of triplicate determinations±standard deviation: The concentrations of tannins, saponins, oxalates and phytates in Eugenia caryophllata (Cloves bud) are 10.12 %, 23.86 %, 0.71 % and 0.93 % respectively. Saponin has the highest value while oxalate has the least value. Higher value of oxalate in human diet can increase the risk of renal calcium absorption and has been implicated as a source of kidney stones (Chai and Liebman [12]). Higher value of tannin in foods interferes with protein absorption and digestive enzymes. From the results obtained in this study, the concentrations of oxalate, tannin and

Journal of Dairy and Veterinary Sciences
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Conclusion
This Study can buttress the fact that Eugenia caryophllata (Clove buds) are not only used to add flavour to a variety of dishes, but can also be used as a dietary supplement to correct some nutritional deficiencies, so as to balance our daily diets. The low concentrations of anti-nutritional factors also suggest that Eugenia caryophllata (Cloves bud) is a good source of food for human and animals. To improve animal health and digestion, cloves are increasingly used in animal feeds. Even though this development is still relatively new, but can provide interesting opportunities.