Sodedji, Kpedetin Ariel Frejus Assogbadjo, Achille Ephrem Lee, Bokyung Kim, Ho-Youn 2024-02-22T02:00:24Z 2024-02-22T02:00:24Z 2024-02-22 2024-02 https://pubs.kist.re.kr/handle/201004/149293 Stress-resilient and highly nutritious legume crops can alleviate the burden of malnutrition and food security globally. Here, we focused on cowpea, a legume grain widely grown and consumed in regions at a high risk of micronutrient deficiencies, and we discussed the past and present research on carotenoid biosynthesis, highlighting different knowledge gaps and prospects for increasing this micronutrient in various edible parts of the crop. The literature survey revealed that, although carotenoids are important micronutrients for human health and nutrition, like in many other pulses, the potential of carotenoid biofortification in cowpea is still underexploited. We found that there is, to some extent, progress in the quantification of this micronutrient in cowpea; however, the diversity in content in the edible parts of the crop, namely, grains, pods, sprouts, and leaves, among the existing cowpea genetic resources was uncovered. Based on the description of the different factors that can influence carotenoid biosynthesis and accumulation in cowpea, we anticipated that an integrated use of omics in breeding coupled with mutagenesis and genetic engineering in a plant factory system would help to achieve a timely and efficient increase in carotenoid content in cowpea for use in the food systems in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. English MDPI AG An Integrated Approach for Biofortification of Carotenoids in Cowpea for Human Nutrition and Health Article 10.3390/plants13030412 1 Plants, v.13, no.3 Plants 13 3 Y scie scopus 001160187100001 2-s2.0-85184702201 Plant Sciences Plant Sciences Review VIGNA-UNGUICULATA BETA-CAROTENE SECONDARY METABOLITES BIOCHEMICAL MARKERS EXTRACTION METHODS GENETIC DIVERSITY VITAMIN-A L. BIOSYNTHESIS GROWTH biofortification omics cowpea carotenoids plant factory speed breeding