Sulforaphane, an isothiocyanate from broccoli, is one of the most potent food-derived anticarcinogens. This compound is not present in the intact vegetable, rather it is formed from its glucosinolate precursor, glucoraphanin, by the action of myrosinase, a thioglucosidase enzyme, when broccoli tissue is crushed or chewed. However, a number of studies have demonstrated that sulforaphane yield fr...

Phase II enzymes including NADPH: Quinone Oxydoreductase 1 (NQO1) and Glutathione-S-Transferase (GST) represents a major and natural cellular protection system against deleterious environmental factors which cause skin damages. Sulforaphane is one of the most popular isothiocyanates found in cruciferous vegetables and known for its cytoprotective effects by inducing Phase II enzymes. Five novel...

Phytochemicals, especially the secondary metabolites synthesized by plants, play key roles in human nutrition, health, wellness, and disease prevention. Some phytochemicals may be harmful to human health. For example, two closely related 4-methylsulfinylbutyl glucosinolate [glucoraphanin] hydrolysis products from broccoli (Brassica oleracea L. var. Botrytis), 1-isothiocyanato-4-(methylsulfinyl)...

Sulforaphane, an isothiocyanate found in cruciferous vegetables, has been shown to induce phase 2 detoxication enzymes and inhibit the growth of chemically induced mammary tumors in rats, although the exact mechanisms of action of sulforaphane are not understood. In this study, we evaluated the effects of sulforaphane on cell growth and death in several human breast cancer cell lines and examin...

The nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 pathway (Nrf2) has been previously identified to protect the brain against various impacts. Here, we investigated the effect of the Nrf2 activator sulforaphane in various seizure models and hippocampal mitochondrial bioenergetics. We found that daily injections of sulforaphane for 5 days elevated the seizure thresholds to 6 Hz stimulation and fluo...

Cancer chemopreventive activity of sulforaphane has been predominantly associated with its ability to induce phase II detoxification enzymes. In the present study, novel targets of sulforaphane were identified and characterized using a proteomics approach. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry were used to produce protein profiles of human colon adenocarcinoma Caco-2 cells t...

Sulforaphane, an aliphatic isothiocyanate, is a known cancer chemopreventive agent. Aiming to investigate antiangiogenic potential of sulforaphane, we here report a potent decrease of newly formed microcapillaries in a human in vitro antiangiogenesis model, with an IC50 of 0.08 micromol/L. The effects of sulforaphane on endothelial cell functions essential for angiogenesis were investigated in ...

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a common neurodegenerative disease in elderly individuals, and effective therapies are unavailable. This study was designed to investigate the neuroprotective effects of sulforaphane (an activator of NF-E2-related factor 2) on mice with AD-like lesions induced by combined administration of aluminum and D-galactose. Step-down-type passive avoidance tests showed sulfor...

Previous studies show that a number of natural compounds from our diet have anticancer effects. Sulforaphane is the most characterized isothiocyanates (ITCs), which are identified in cruciferous vegetables. Sulforaphane is viewed as a conceptually promising agent in cancer prevention. Because of its ability to induce cancer cell apoptosis, it inhibits progression of benign tumors to malignant t...

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to examine the molecular mechanisms by which sulforaphane enhances the therapeutic potential of tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) in prostate cancer. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Cell viability and apoptosis assays were done by XTT and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling assay, respectively. Tumor-bea...