Comprehensive Proximate, Amino Acid, and Mineral Composition of Edible Oyster Mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus)
Chukwunonso Anthony Nsude *
Department of Applied Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Enugu State University of Science and Technology, Enugu State, Nigeria.
Onuabuchi Nnenna Ani
Department of Applied Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Enugu State University of Science and Technology, Enugu State, Nigeria.
Ujunwa Esther Agbo
Department of Chemical Sciences (Biochemistry), Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences, Spiritan University, Nneochi, Abia State, Nigeria.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Oyster mushrooms have been considered as therapeutic and nutrient-rich foods in numerous countries for years due to their significant levels of nutritional components, proximate amino acids, and minerals. This study focuses on the quantitative investigation of the proximate, amino acid, and mineral profiles of edible oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus). The proximate parameters analyzed include ash, moisture, crude protein, fat, fibre, and carbohydrate. Amino acid composition was assessed using the High-Performance Liquid Chromatographic (HPLC) Technique, whereas mineral analysis was conducted using the Agilent FS240AA Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. The findings revealed that oyster mushroom was high in moisture (43.43±0.141%), carbohydrate (25.51±0.121%), fibre (11.21±0.099%), protein (8.57±0.127%), and ash (6.63±0.021%) but low in fat (4.67±0.011%). Pleurotus ostreatus indicated richness in amino acid composition with higher total concentrations of essential amino acids than non-essential amino acids of the isolated protein. Isoleucine presented the highest essential amino acid content (38.189 ppm while proline showed the highest nonessential amino acid content (20.051 ppm). Also, Pleurotus ostreatus contains considerable amounts of calcium (8.267±0.114 ppm), potassium (7.454±0.077 ppm), sodium (6.454±0.041 ppm), and magnesium (6.379±0.016 ppm), and moderate amounts of zinc (0.267±0.021 ppm), iron (0.595±0.02 ppm), manganese (0.267±0.01 ppm), aluminum (0.021±0.01), and molybdenum (0.178±0.01 ppm). Heavy metals like nickel, chromium, mercury, vanadium, and silicon were present in tolerable quantities while arsenic and silver were completely absent. Our result suggests that Pleurotus ostreatus could be a good source of nutrition and important for medicinal purposes.
Keywords: Pleurotus ostreatus, proximate, moisture, amino acid, isoleucine and mineral composition