Fenugreek and other lesser known legume galactomannan-polysaccharides: Scope for developments

Abstract

Among useful plants, legumes stand next only to grasses, yet the variety of products produced from legumes are more numerous than those from grasses, which mainly contain glucans (starches & cellulose), hemicelluloses and sugars as carbohydrates. Some legume seeds additionally have galactomannans and amyloid as endosperm reserve polysaccharides, while many legume trees exude variety of gums. Because of unique industrial applications, legume galactomannans have acquired commercial value. There are many unutilized tropical legume galactomannans that could be exploited. This review presents galactomannans of some less common legumes.