Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) was domesticated ∼8000 years ago in the Americas and today is a staple food worldwide. Besides caloric intake, common bean is also an important source of protein and micronutrients and it is widely appreciated in developing countries for their affordability (compared to animal protein) and its long storage life. As a legume, common bean also has the economic and...

Common beans are a staple food and the major source of iron for populations in Eastern Africa and Latin America. Bean iron concentration is high and can be further increased by biofortification. A major constraint to bean iron biofortification is low iron absorption, attributed to inhibitory compounds such as phytic acid (PA) and polyphenol(s) (PP). We have evaluated the usefulness of the commo...

In total, 339 faba bean (Vicia faba L.) and 100 pea (Pisum sativum L.) accessions were screened for their ability to resist Callosobruchus chinensis L. in free choice laboratory tests. Four, 15, and 43 faba bean varieties were highly resistant, resistant, and moderately resistant to C. chinensis, respectively. Three immune, three highly resistant, and six resistant accessions were discovered am...

Drought is one of the limiting factor in common bean, development of common bean varieties that adapted to drought situations is the main focus for improving food crops. In this study, 25 genotypes of common beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) were grown under drought stress and non-stress conditions. The field work was conducted at Melkassa Agricultural Research Center during the off-season that lai...

Drought is one of the limiting factor in common bean, development of common bean varieties that adapted to drought situations is the main focus for improving food crops. In this study, 25 genotypes of common beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) were grown under drought stress and non-stress conditions. The field work was conducted at Melkassa Agricultural Research Center during the off-season that lai...

Introduction Yellow-seeded beans are a minor commercial grain type from the Andean gene pool that are eaten in a subset of Latin American bean-producing countries, notably in Peru, Mexico and Brazil. Recently, they have become embroiled in a controversy in the United States where a patent was claimed on the marketing of yellow beans. In the meantime, the scientific basis for the yellow color is...

Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is an important legume, useful for its high protein and dietary fiber. The fungal pathogen Uromyces appendiculatus (Pers.) Unger can cause major loss in susceptible varieties of the common bean. The Ur-3 locus provides race specific resistance to virulent strains or races of the bean rust pathogen along with Crg, (Complements resistance gene), which is requir...

As Mexico is located within Mesoamerica, it is considered the site where the bean plant originated and where it was domesticated. Beans have been an integral part of the Mexican diet for thousands of years. Within the country, there are a number of genotypes possessing highly diverse physical and chemical properties. This review describes the major bioactive compounds contained on the Mexican v...