Biological Profile of Erucin: A New Promising Anticancer Agent from Cruciferous Vegetables

Abstract

Consumption of cruciferous vegetables has been associated with a reduced risk in the development of various types of cancer. This has been attributed to the bioactive hydrolysis products that are derived from these vegetables, namely isothiocyanates. Erucin is one such product derived from rocket salads, which is structurally related to sulforaphane, a well-studied broccoli-derived isothiocyanate. In this review, we present current knowledge on mechanisms of action of erucin in chemoprevention obtained from cell and animal models and relate it to other isothiocyanates. These mechanisms include modulation of phase I, II and III detoxification, regulation of cell growth by induction of apoptosis and cell cycle arrest, induction of ROS-mechanisms and regulation androgen receptor pathways.

Isothiocyanates inhibit psoriasis-related proinflammatory factors in human skin

“…They have similar aliphatic side chains that could support a similar reaction. Interestingly, both are metabolically interconverted in humans in vivo (oxidation-reduction of the sulfur atom), implying similar biological activity [31]. In an investigation of the anti-inflammatory mechanisms of PEITC derivatives (some more active than PEITC itself), the chemical structure of the derivative had an effect on the activity, which was found to be elicited by means of NFjB transactivation suppression [15].…”

The antibacterial properties of isothiocyanates

“…The ITC ER is formed both from the enzymic hydrolysis of glucoerucin (Table 1), a glucosinolate found at high levels in rocket species of the family Brassicaceae (Eruca sativa), and from the in vivo reduction of SFN (Kassahun et al, 1997), derived from broccoli and the action of myrosinase on glucoraphanin from Brassica oleracea. ER possesses anticancer properties by the modulation of phase I, II and III detoxification, the induction of apoptosis and cell cycle arrest, the induction of oxidative stress and the regulation of androgen receptor pathways (for review see Melchini & Traka, 2010). The QS-inhibiting ability of ER and SFN was assayed using a reporter strain of Ps.…”

Sensitization of HER2 Positive Breast Cancer Cells to Lapatinib Using Plants-Derived Isothiocyanates

“…Beside targeted therapy, many recent studies focused on search for the anticancer dietary agents, since it has been announced that cancer can be preventable in 30%-40% by appropriate nutrition (WCRF and AICR report) (17). Some of these compounds, for instance isothiocyanates (ITCs), biologically active compounds naturally occurring in cruciferous vegetables, are able to prevent or retard carcinogenesis at the initiation, promotion, or progression stages.…”