Green Chemo-Prevention: An Integrated Review Between Agriculture and Medicine

Abstract

The isothiocyanate's chemoprevention properties are reported to be present in cruciferous veggies through a variety of mechanisms. Sulforaphane, a phytochemical found in green leafy vegetables, has shown promise in the prevention and treatment of several cancers, including those of the prostate, breast, colon, skin, urinary bladder, and oral cavities. These malignancies include those that affect these organs. This substance is naturally present in broccoli sprouts, kale, cabbage, cauliflower, and garden cress. Broccoli should be a regular part of your diet because it contains a variety of bioactive substances such as vitamins, polyphenols, sulfides, glucosinolates, and antioxidants. Sulforaphane may be used as an inexpensive replacement or dietary supplement for chemo preventive therapy, according to the findings of epidemiological and experimental studies.

Phase 2 detoxification enzymes like glutathione transferases, epoxide hydrolase, NAD(P)H: quinone reductase, and glucuronosyltransferases, as well as epoxide hydrolase and epoxide hydrolase, are produced when the body is stimulated. This is a useful tactic for preventing cancer and fending off the harm that electrophiles and reactive oxygen species can cause. Isothiocyanates are widely distributed in the Cruciferae family and Brassica genus of food plants, which include both broccoli and cauliflower. The most typical form of these substances is glucosinolate precursors. Sulforaphane and 4-methylsulfinylbutyl isothiocyanate, two of these isothiocyanates, are particularly powerful inducers of phase 2 enzymes.

It is feasible to successfully extract glucosinolates and isothiocyanates from plants by homogenizing them at a temperature of around 50 degrees Celsius in a solution of equal parts dimethyl sulfoxide, dimethylformamide, and acetonitrile. This method avoids the hydrolysis of glucosinolates by myrosinase.

It's interesting to note that glucoraphanin, the precursor to sulforaphane, is 10–100 times more abundant in 3-day-old sprouts of various cruciferous vegetables, including broccoli and cauliflower than it is in fully grown veggies. Dimethylbenz(a)anthracene-treated rats displayed notable reductions in mammary tumor occurrence, quantity, and rate of growth when fed extracts from 3-day-old broccoli sprouts. These extracts' primary enzyme-inducing components were either glucoraphanin or sulforaphane. As a result, crucifer sprouts might provide an equivalent amount of cancer prevention to eating far larger quantities of the same mature vegetable species.