Abstract
The antiproliferative effect of the bioaccessible fractions (BFs) of four hydroponic Brassicaceae microgreens (broccoli, kale, mustard and radish) was evaluated on colon cancer Caco-2 cells vs. normal colon CCD18-Co cells after 24 h treatment with BFs diluted 1:10 v/v in cell culture medium. Their bioactivity was compared with the digestion blank, while the colon cancer chemotherapeutic drug 5-fluorouracil was used as a positive control. Cell viability (mitochondrial enzyme activity assay (MTT test) and Trypan blue test) and mechanisms related to antiproliferative activity (cell cycle, apoptosis/necrosis, mitochondrial membrane potential, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, Ca2+ and glutathione (GSH) intracellular content) were studied. All microgreen BFs increased ROS and decreased GSH, altering the redox status and causing mitochondrial membrane dissipation followed by a general cell cycle arrest in G2/M and apoptotic cell death via a Ca2+-independent mechanism. As a result, the antioxidant bioactive compounds present in these microgreen species reduced the proliferation of tumoral cells (10 to 12.8% -MTT or 20 to 41.9% -Trypan blue), showing lesser effects with broccoli microgreens, in line with their lower ascorbic acid content and total antioxidant capacity. Therefore, the daily intake of microgreens within a balanced diet could be a preventive nutritional strategy to reduce the burden of chronic degenerative diseases such as colon cancer.
Highlights
Brassica vegetables represent one of the ten most economically important crops in the global agriculture and markets [1]
Their bioaccessible fractions (BFs) could act at a cellular level through one or more of the mechanisms described for these phytochemicals on human colon cancer cells [22,23]
Given that this study shows that BFs of microgreens can induce apoptosis in Caco-2 cells, further investigations could be focused on determining the apoptotic pathways activated through the evaluation of the protein level and phosphorylation status of the Bcl-2 family members and activation of caspases
Summary
Brassica vegetables represent one of the ten most economically important crops in the global agriculture and markets [1]. Different antioxidant bioactive compounds such as ascorbic acid, tocopherols, carotenoids, polyphenols and glucosinolates have been considered responsible for the prevention of chronic diseases attributed to cruciferous vegetables [3,4]. In this sense, the consumption of Brassica greens has been associated with a reduced risk of the development of colorectal, stomach, pancreatic, lung, breast and ovarian cancer [2,3,4,5]. The third most common cancer worldwide, several epidemiological, experimental and clinical studies have considered vegetables belonging to the Brassicaceae family as one of the protective plant foods for this type of cancer [8]
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