Chemical composition of young cladodes of opuntia ficus indica and pos

The work includes a synthesis of the current knowledge on the plant Opuntia ficus indica (Cactaceae). In a first part it will be made the point on its biodiversity, its anatomy and its resistance to the drought and its ecological role. The food aspect which will be approached thereafter, will concern the composition for the fodder exploitation and the food use by reviewing the practices according to the countries, it will be approached in parallel the functional aspect of the constituents and their interest for the health. The different technologies developed for the food and non-food exploitation of the fruit and cladodes will be reviewed. A section will also be devoted to the medicinal properties reported by the most recent research and traditional uses. The last part will be devoted to the socio-economic aspects and the interest of the plant in relation to the climatic changes and their consequences on the environment and the desertification.