The nutritional significance, biosynthesis and bioavailability of glucosinolates in human foods

Abstract

The glucosinolates are a large group of sulphur‐containing compounds which occur in all the economically important varieties of Brassica vegetable. Their common structure comprises a β‐D‐thioglucose group, a sulphonated oxime moiety and a variable side‐chain derived from methionine, tryptophan or phenylalanine. When the plant tissue is damaged the glucosinolates are hydrolysed by the endogenous enzyme ‘myrosinase’ (thioglucoside glycohydrolase EC 3:2:3:1), to release a range of breakdown products including the bitter, biologically active isothiocyanates. Although these compounds exert antinutritional effects in animals there is also substantial evidence that they are the principal source of anticarcinogenic activity in Brassica vegetables, and this provides a strong motive for the manipulation of glucosinolate levels in vegetables for human consumption. This review provides an overview of the evidence for a beneficial role for glucosinolates in human health, and describes the current state of knowledge regarding the genetics and biosynthesis of glucosinolates, their chemical analysis, their behaviour during cooking and processing, and their bioavailability to humans. As the genetic basis of glucosinolate biosynthesis becomes more apparent, and tools for marker‐assisted plant breeding become more available, the selective breeding of horticultural brassicas with different levels and types of glucosinolates, whether by conventional means or genetic manipulation, is becoming a practical possibility. However before this strategy becomes commercially viable, the health benefits of glucosinolates for human beings must be unequivocally established. © 2000 Society of Chemical Industry

Glucosinolates inBrassicavegetables: The influence of the food supply chain on intake, bioavailability and human health

“…There are almost no reports on the effect of methionine fertilisation on the GLS content in vegetable crops despite methionine being a precursor in alkyl and alkenyl GLS syntheses [101]. However, methionine application via foliar fertilisation [102] or leaf stalk infusion increased the methylsulphinyl GLSs glucoraphanin and glucoiberin in broccoli by up to 16% [103], but methionine foliar spraying had no effect on aliphatic GLS content in radish roots [102].…”

Are isothiocyanates potential anti-cancer drugs?

“…The product distribution depends on the glucosinolate, temperature, pH and presence of reducing agents. Over 100 different glucosinolates have been identified, and they are classified into 4 groups: saturated aliphatic, unsaturated aliphatic, aromatic and indolyl [8] . The identities and amount of glucosinolate in plants vary with species, variety and growing conditions.…”

Physicochemical Quality Changes in Chinese Cabbage with Storage Period and Temperature: A Review

“…Beneficial functional components in Chinese cabbage include:chlorophyll, which is an antioxidant that combats cancer and reduces cholesterol (Lanfer-Marquez et al, 2005;Seong et al, 2006); ascorbic acid, which is involved in maintaining food quality, and is an antioxidant that prevents the peroxidation of fat (Hu et al, 2007); polyamine, which acts in lignin resynthesis, the protection of biological membranes, and the regulation of osmotic pressure (Bouchereau et al, 1999;Marton and Morris, 1987;Hwang et al, 2004); GSL and its derivatives (Mithen et al, 2000); phenol (Zhang et al, 2013); and amino acids (Hong and Kim, 2006) (Table2).…”