Lathyrus sativus

{{Short description|Species of plant in the pea family}} {{Speciesbox |image = Lathyrus sativus flowers Bangladesh cropped.JPG |image_caption = |genus = Lathyrus |species = sativus |authority = L. |synonyms = {{collapsible list | *''Cicercula alata'' Moench *''Cicercula alba'' Medik. *''Cicercula caerulea'' Medik. *''Cicercula sativa'' (L.) Medik. *''Lathyrus asiaticus'' (Zalkind) Kudrj. *''Lathyrus azureus'' Dean *''Lathyrus sativus'' subsp. ''albus'' Smekalova *''Lathyrus sativus'' f. ''chlorospermus'' Smekalova *''Lathyrus sativus'' var. ''comitans'' Smekalova *''Lathyrus sativus'' var. ''depressus'' Smekalova *''Lathyrus sativus'' var. ''orbiculatus'' Smekalova *''Lathyrus sativus'' var. ''parviflorus'' Smekalova *''Lathyrus sativus'' var. ''pisiformis'' Smekalova *''Lathyrus sativus'' var. ''platyspermus'' Smekalova *''Lathyrus sativus'' var. ''pulchrus'' Smekalova *''Lathyrus sativus'' var. ''variegatus'' Smekalova *''Lathyrus sativus'' var. ''violascens'' Smekalova *''Orobus bimarginatus'' Stokes *''Pisum lathyrus'' E.H.L.Krause }} |synonyms_ref = <ref>{{cite web |url=http://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:501990-1#synonyms |title=''Lathyrus sativus'' L. |author= |date=2017 |website=Plants of the World Online |publisher=Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |access-date=20 July 2020 }}</ref> }}

'''''Lathyrus sativus''''', also known as '''grass pea''', '''cicerchia''', '''blue sweet pea''', '''chickling pea''', '''chickling vetch''', '''Indian pea''',<ref name=BSBI07>{{BSBI 2007 |accessdate=2014-10-17 }}</ref> '''white pea'''<ref>{{PLANTS|id=LASA2|taxon=Lathyrus precatorius|accessdate=23 January 2016}}</ref> and '''white vetch''',<ref name=KewGardens>{{cite web | title=''Lathyrus sativus'' (grass pea) |publisher=Kew Gardens| url=http://www.kew.org/science-conservation/plants-fungi/lathyrus-sativus-grass-pea | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160130062436/http://www.kew.org/science-conservation/plants-fungi/lathyrus-sativus-grass-pea | archive-date=30 January 2016 | url-status=dead }}</ref> is a legume (family Fabaceae) commonly grown for human consumption and livestock feed in Asia and East Africa.<ref>Oudhia, P. (1999). Allelopathic effects of some obnoxious weeds on germination and seedling vigour of ''Lathyrus sativus''. FABIS Newsletter 42:32-34.</ref> It is a particularly important crop in areas that are prone to drought and famine, and is thought of as an 'insurance crop' as it produces reliable yields when all other crops fail. The seeds contain a neurotoxin that causes lathyrism, a neurodegenerative disease, if eaten as a primary protein source for a prolonged period.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Singh |first1=Surya S |last2=Rao |first2=SLN |date=July 2013 |title=Lessons from neurolathyrism: A disease of the past & the future of Lathyrus sativus (Khesari dal) |journal=The Indian Journal of Medical Research |language=en |volume=138 |issue=1 |pages=32–37 |pmid=24056554 |pmc=3767245 }}</ref>

==Cultivation== Although the exact origins of ''L. sativus'' are debated, it was most likely domesticated in the Balkan region in about 6000 BCE.<ref name="KewGardens" />

''Lathyrus sativus'' grows best where the average temperature is 10–25 °C and average rainfall is {{convert|400|–|650|mm|in|abbr=on}} per year. Like other legumes, it improves the nitrogen content of soil. The crop can survive drought or floods,<ref name=KewGardens/> but grows best in moist soils. It tolerates a range of soil types from light sandy through loamy to heavy clay, and acid, neutral, or alkaline soils. It does not tolerate shade.<ref name=PlantsForAFuture>''Plants for a Future'' [http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Lathyrus+sativus ''Lathyrus sativus'']</ref>

Slow Food inducted Serra de'Conti Cicerchia, a cicerchia grown in Serra de’ Conti Municipality, Ancona Province, Marche region of Italy into the Ark of Taste.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Serra De' Conti Cicerchia – Presìdi Slow Food|url=https://www.fondazioneslowfood.com/en/slow-food-presidia/serra-de-conti-cicerchia/|access-date=2020-08-10|website=Slow Food Foundation|language=en-US}}</ref>

==Uses== thumb|left|140px|''Gachas manchegas'', a grass pea flour preparation Seed is sold for human consumption at markets in Florence. Consumption of this pulse in Italy is limited to some areas in the central part of the country, and is steadily declining.{{Citation needed|date=December 2009}}

Flour made from grass peas (Spanish: ''almorta'') is the main ingredient for the ''gachas manchegas'' or ''gachas de almorta''.<ref>[http://es.wikibooks.org/wiki/Gachas_manchegas Gachas manchegas recipe] {{in lang|es}}</ref> Accompaniments for the dish vary throughout La Mancha. This is an ancient Manchego cuisine staple, generally consumed during the cold winter months. The dish is generally eaten directly out of the pan in which it was cooked, using either a spoon or a simple slice of bread. This dish is commonly consumed immediately after removing it from the fire, being careful not to burn one's lips or tongue.{{Citation needed|date=September 2016}}

Due to its toxicity, it was forbidden for human consumption in Spain from 1967<ref name="AECOSAN">{{cite report| title=BOE-A-1967-16485 Decreto 2484/1967, de 21 de septiembre, por el que se aprueba el texto del Código Alimentario Español|trans-title=Decree approving the Spanish Food Regulations|journal=Boletín Oficial del Estado| date=21 September 1967|section= Paragraphs 3.18.09 a and b and 5.36.16 b| url=https://www.boe.es/eli/es/d/1967/09/21/2484 | language=es}}</ref> to 2018.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.aesan.gob.es/AECOSAN/docs/documentos/seguridad_alimentaria/evaluacion_riesgos/informes_comite/HARINA_ALMORTAS.pdf|title=Informe del Comité Científico de la Agencia Española de Consumo, Seguridad Alimentaria y Nutrición (AECOSAN) sobre la seguridad del consumo de harina de almortas.|date=2018-12-23|language=es-ES}}</ref> However, it was widely sold as animal feed, but displayed together with flours for human consumption.<ref name="Mulet">{{cite book |last1=Mulet |first1=J. M. |title=Comer sin miedo |date=2011 |publisher=Booket |location=Barcelona |isbn=9788423348862 |page=55 |edition=6th reprint |language=es-ES |quote=Esto ha motivado que la harina de almorta se siga vendiendo en los supermercados a pesar de la prohibición, etiquetada como "pienso para animales" (en letra pequeña). Curiosamente, no la tienen en la sección de mascotas, sino en la de harinas.}}</ref>

The town of Alvaiázere in Portugal dedicates a festival lasting several days to dishes featuring the pulse. Alvaiázere calls itself the ''Chícharo'' capital, the name of this pulse in Portuguese.

Immature seeds can be eaten like green peas. Mature seeds need soaking and thorough cooking to reduce toxins.<ref name=PlantsForAFuture/>

The leaves and stem are cooked and eaten as ''chana saga'' (Odia: ଚଣା ଶାଗ) in parts of Odisha, India.

==Neurotoxic properties== thumb|''Lathyrus sativus'' seeds, dried Like other grain legumes, ''L. sativus'' produces a high-protein seed. The seeds however also contain variable amounts of a neurotoxic amino acid β-N-oxalyl-L-α,β-diaminopropionic acid (ODAP).<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Rao|first1=S. L. N.|last2=Adiga|first2=P. R.|last3=Sarma|first3=P. S.|date=1964-03-01|title=The Isolation and Characterization of β-N-Oxalyl-L-α,β-Diaminopropionic Acid: A Neurotoxin from the Seeds of ''Lathyrus sativus''*|journal=Biochemistry|volume=3|issue=3|pages=432–436|doi=10.1021/bi00891a022|issn=0006-2960|pmid=14155110}}</ref> ODAP is considered the cause of the disease neurolathyrism, a neurodegenerative disease that causes paralysis of the lower body: emaciation of gluteal muscle (buttocks).<ref name=KewGardens/> The disease has historically occurred after famines in Europe (France, Spain, Germany), North Africa, and South Asia, and is still prevalent in Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Afghanistan (panhandle) when ''Lathyrus'' seed is the exclusive or main source of nutrients for extended periods. ODAP concentration increases in plants grown under stressful conditions, compounding the problem.{{blockquote|The crop is harmless to humans in small quantities, but eating it as a major part of the diet over a three-month period can cause permanent paralysis below the knees in adults and brain damage in children, a disorder known as lathyrism. (Kew Gardens)<ref name=KewGardens/>}} Some authors have argued that this toxicity is overstated, and ''L. sativus'' is harmless as part of a normal diet.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Rao|first=S. L. N.|date=2011-03-01|title=A look at the brighter facets of β-N-oxalyl-l-α,β-diaminopropionic acid, homoarginine and the grass pea|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/45285616|journal=Food and Chemical Toxicology|volume=49|issue=3|pages=620–622|doi=10.1016/j.fct.2010.06.054|pmid=20654679}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Singh|first1=Surya S.|last2=Rao|first2=S. L. N.|date=2013-07-01|title=Lessons from neurolathyrism: A disease of the past & the future of Lathyrus sativus (Khesari dal)|journal=The Indian Journal of Medical Research|volume=138|issue=1|pages=32–37|issn=0971-5916|pmc=3767245|pmid=24056554}}</ref>

thumb|right|350px|''Gracias á la almorta'', Goya print

Goya in his 1810–1815 ''The Disasters of War'' series illustrates the harm that can be done by excessive consumption of grass peas in times of famine in his print ''Gracias á la almorta'' (''Thanks to the grass pea''),<ref>{{cite web | title=Thanks to the grass pea (Gracias á la almorta) | publisher=Fundación Goya en Aragón |date=16 December 2010 | url=https://fundaciongoyaenaragon.es/eng/obra/gracias-a-la-almorta-1/805 | access-date=8 July 2023}}</ref> about Napoleon's siege of Madrid. It depicts a woman who can no longer walk due to lathyrism, surrounded by starving people waiting for bowls of grass pea-based food.<ref name=mckie>{{cite news| last=McKie | first=Robin | title=UK scientists could make poison pea a crucial crop | newspaper=The Guardian | date=8 July 2023 | url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/jul/08/uk-scientists-could-make-poisonous-grass-pea-a-valuable-food-crop }}</ref> Grass-pea products were banned for sale for human consumption in Spain from 1967 to 2018, due to toxicity.

This legume is the only known dietary source for L-homoarginine{{citation needed|date=December 2014}} and is preferred{{by whom?|date=June 2024}} over arginine for nitric oxide (NO) generation. L-ODAP is reported to act as an activator of calcium-dependent protein kinase C.{{context?|date=June 2024}}

==Breeding programs== left|thumb|240x240px|A grasspea breeder at ''International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas'' (ICARDA)'s facilities at Marchouch Station, Morocco. Photo: Michael Major/Crop Trust Breeding programs are underway to produce lines of ''Lathyrus sativus'' that contain ODAP levels too low to be dangerous, while maintaining disease and insect resistance and tolerance to drought, heat, and salinity.<ref name="patient">{{Cite web|url=http://patient.info/doctor/lathyrism|title=Lathyrism|first=Chloe|last=Borton|website=Patient|publisher=EMIS Group|language=en-GB|date=22 March 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Edwards |first1=Anne |last2=Njaci |first2=Isaac |last3=Sarkar |first3=Abhimanyu |last4=Jiang |first4=Zhouqian |last5=Kaithakottil |first5=Gemy George |last6=Moore |first6=Christopher |last7=Cheema |first7=Jitender |last8=Stevenson |first8=Clare E. M. |last9=Rejzek |first9=Martin |last10=Novák |first10=Petr |last11=Vigouroux |first11=Marielle |last12=Vickers |first12=Martin |last13=Wouters |first13=Roland H. M. |last14=Paajanen |first14=Pirita |last15=Steuernagel |first15=Burkhard |date=2023-02-16 |title=Genomics and biochemical analyses reveal a metabolon key to β-L-ODAP biosynthesis in Lathyrus sativus |journal=Nature Communications |language=en |volume=14 |issue=1 |pages=876 |doi=10.1038/s41467-023-36503-2|doi-access=free|issn=2041-1723 |pmc=9935904 |pmid=36797319|bibcode=2023NatCo..14..876E }}</ref><ref name=mckie/> {{Blockquote|Certain varieties from western Asia have a low level of the neurotoxin and breeders and farmers are now exploring this genetic diversity to develop varieties that maintain the tolerance to extreme conditions, while at the same time achieving a safe level of the toxic compound.<ref>{{cite web | title=Grasspea | website=Crop Trust | url=https://www.croptrust.org/pgrfa-hub/crops-countries-and-genebanks/crops/grasspea/ | access-date=8 July 2023 | archive-date=8 July 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230708054907/https://www.croptrust.org/pgrfa-hub/crops-countries-and-genebanks/crops/grasspea/ | url-status=dead }}</ref>}}

Wild relatives are a prominent source of genetic material to improve cultivars. From 2016 to 2018, the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) evaluated wild relatives<ref>{{cite web | title=Grasspea Pre-breeding Project | website=Crop Wild Relatives | date=10 May 2019 | url=https://www.cwrdiversity.org/partnership/grasspea-pre-breeding-project/ }}</ref> to explore genes for low or no ODAP and resistance/tolerance to biotic/abiotic stresses and transfer them to cultivated grass pea.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Abdallah|first1=Fadoua|last2=Kumar|first2=Shiv|last3=Amri|first3=Ahmed|last4=Mentag|first4=Rachid|last5=Kehel|first5=Zakaria|last6=Mejri|first6=Rajia Kchaou|last7=Triqui|first7=Zine El Abidine|last8=Hejjaoui|first8=Kamal|last9=Baum|first9=Michael|last10=Amri|first10=Moez|date=2021|title=Wild Lathyrus species as a great source of resistance for introgression into cultivated grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) against broomrape weeds (Orobanche crenata Forsk. and Orobanche foetida Poir.)|journal=Crop Science|language=en|volume=61|issue=1|pages=263–276|doi=10.1002/csc2.20399|issn=1435-0653|doi-access=free}}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *{{Wikispecies-inline|Lathyrus sativus}} *[http://www.clima.uwa.edu.au/publications/lathyrus ''Lathyrus'' newsletter] *[https://lambeinfund.org/ ''What's new around Lathyrus?'' newsletter]

sativus Category:Flora of Asia Category:Edible legumes Category:Medicinal plants Category:Castilian-La Mancha cuisine Category:Plants described in 1753 Category:Botanical taxa named by Carl Linnaeus