Farmers' perceptions on the causes of cassava root bitterness: A case of konzo-affected Mtwara region, Tanzania.

ABSTRACT: In areas where konzo (a cassava cyanide related paralytic disorder) persists, the agronomic factors causing increased cyanogenic glucoside levels in cassava, during periods without water stress, are hardly known. However, through their assessment of cassava root toxicity, using its bitter taste, farmers may have noticed factors unrelated to water stress that additionally influence the cyanogenic glucoside content of cassava cultivated in these areas. Increased cassava root bitterness is often associated with an increase in cyanogenic glucoside levels, making it a good indicator of changes in root cyanogenic glucoside content. Bitter cassava varieties that are preferentially planted by people living in most konzo-affected areas, are an additional known contributor to high cyanogenic glucosi

SUBMITTER: Imakumbili MLE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6472768 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature