Quinoa is recognized as a crop of great value in terms of tolerance to abiotic stresses and there is growing interest to introduce it in marginal agricultural production systems worldwide. Also, quinoa is one of the most nutritious food crops currently known and the nutritive properties of the crop are seen as a means to fight malnutrition globally. Various quinoa cultivars have been screened for tolerance to salinity, water-use efficiency and nutritional quality and the positive attributes found in them have created even wider global interest in its cultivation. This paper summarizes 15 years of studies on assessing the potential for introducing the crop in a few countries of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and Central Asia regions and describes the key constraints for scaling-up the production under marginal growing conditions in the newly introduced countries.

This study aimed to compare the influence of extraction methods on the pharmaceutical and cosmetic properties of medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs). For this purpose, the dried plant materials were extracted using advanced (microwave (MAE), ultrasonic (UAE), and homogenizer (HAE) assisted extractions) and conventional techniques (maceration, percolation, decoction, infusion, and Soxhlet). The tyrosinase, elastase, α-amylase, butyryl, and acetylcholinesterase inhibition were tested by using L-3,4 dihydroxy-phenylalanine, N-Succinyl-Ala-Ala-p-nitroanilide, butyryl, and acetylcholine as respective substrates. Antioxidant activities were studied by ABTS, DPPH, and FRAP. In terms of extraction yield, advanced extraction techniques showed the highest values (MAE > UAE > HAE). Chemical profiles were dependent on the phenolic compounds tested, whereas the antioxidant activities were always higher, mainly in infusion and decoction as a conventional technique. In relation to the pharmaceutical and cosmetic properties, the highest inhibitory activities against α-amylase and acetylcholinesterase were observed for Soxhlet and macerated extracts, whereas the highest activity against tyrosinase was obtained with MAE > maceration > Soxhlet. Elastase and butyrylcholinesterase inhibitory activities were in the order of Soxhlet > maceration > percolation, with no activities recorded for the other tested methods. In conclusion, advanced methods afford an extract with high yield, while conventional methods might be an adequate approach for minimal changes in the biological properties of the extract.