Valle Agricola lentil, an unknown lentil (Lens culinaris Medik.) seed from Southern Italy as a novel antioxidant and prebiotic source.

In order to promote 'Valle Agricola' lentil, an autochthonous lentil of the Campania Region, a thorough investigation of its biochemical and nutritional properties has been carried out. The macronutrient content (proteins, carbohydrates and lipids), free and total amino acids, and unsaturated fatty acids were determined. The antioxidant capability of raw 'Valle Agricola' lentils, as well as of boiled ones, was estimated in terms of their total phenol content (TPC), ORAC value, and free radical scavenging capacities using DPPH and ABTS assays. The data obtained evidenced that the boiling process slightly decreased Valle Agricola lentil's antioxidant power. Furthermore, when trypsin and chymotrypsin inhibitory activities were measured, a large decrease of the levels of anti-nutritional factors was estimated. In order to have a phytochemical overview of this autochthonous lentil seed, LC-ESI-MS/MS analysis was applied to raw and boiled lentil extracts. Flavonol glycosides and free flavanols, as well as typical seed prebiotic saccharides, were the most representative constituents.