Abstract
Cruciferous vegetables are gaining importance as nutritious and sustainable foods, rich in phytochemical compounds such as glucosinolates (GSLs). However, the breakdown products of these sulfur-based compounds, mainly represented by isothiocyanates (ITC) and indoles, can contribute to human health. In the human digestive system, the formation of these compounds continues to varying extents in the different stages of digestion, due to the contact of GSLs with different gastric fluids and enzymes under the physicochemical conditions of the gastrointestinal tract. Therefore, the aim of the present work was to uncover the effect of gastrointestinal digestion on the release of glucosinolates and their transformation into their bioactive counterparts by applying a simulated in vitro static model on a range of brassica (red radish, red cabbage, broccoli, and mustard) sprouts. In this sense, significantly higher bioaccessibility of ITC and indoles from GSLs of red cabbage sprouts was observed in comparison with broccoli, red radish, and mustard sprouts, due to the aliphatic GSLs proportion present in the different sprouts. This indicates that the bioaccessibility of GSLs from Brasicaceae sprouts is not exclusively associated with the initial content of these compounds in the plant material (almost negligible), but also with the release of GSLs and the ongoing breakdown reactions during the gastric and intestinal phases of digestion, respectively. Additionally, aliphatic GSLs provided higher bioaccessibility of their corresponding ITC in comparison to indolic and aromatic GSLs.
Highlights
In recent decades, dietary patterns have been recognized as a key factor contributing to human health, with the proportion of plant-based foods to achieve healthy diets being noticed as especially important
The total contents of intact GSLs and ITCs in the studied cruciferous sprouts, before in vitro digestion, evidenced the predominance of GSLs—total concentration of which decreased as follows: white mustard (18.99 mg/100 g of fresh weight) > red cabbage (10.39 mg/100 g fw) > broccoli and red radish (5.50 mg/100 g fw, on average) (Figure 2)— relative to the ITC content, which was negligible in the intact plant material (0.46 mg/g fw, on average, in all sprouts) (Figure 2)
The lowest concentration of indole GSLs corresponded to red radish sprouts (1.65 mg/100 g fw) (Figure 2), again showing results that were in agreement with previous reports in the literature [13,14]
Summary
Dietary patterns have been recognized as a key factor contributing to human health, with the proportion of plant-based foods to achieve healthy diets being noticed as especially important. With respect to plant-based foods, the inclusion of cruciferous varieties in dietary recommendations has intensified, as they provide health-promoting nutrients and compounds, mainly represented by micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) and bioactive phytochemicals (e.g., glucosinolates (GSLs)). This composition has been associated with the prevention of several non-communicable diseases, such as inflammatory and tumoral processes, as well as radical scavenging activities and the prevention of diverse pathological metabolic processes [2]. In this context, cruciferous sprouts, namely broccoli ‘Rambo’), and white mustard (Sinapis alba L.), have been reported to be valuable dietary sources of GSLs, the characteristic bioactive phytochemicals present in Brassicaceae foods [3,4], mainly represented by aplihatic glucoraphanin (in broccoli and cabbage) and glucoraphenin (in radish), aromatic glucosinalbin (mustard), and the characteristic indolic GSLs, which includes glucobrassicin and its hydroxy- and methoxy-derivatives, present in all ed varieties, each of them featured by specific biological traits [5,6]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
