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In Europe, around 31 million tonnes of food by-products are generated during primary production and trade. The management of these by-products may cause a negative impact, both at the economic and environmental levels, for both industry and society. In this regard, taking into consideration that these by-products retain the dietary fibre compositions and the bioactive compounds of the starting materials, plant food agro-industries have an interest in taking advantage of them, from a nutritional point of view. Therefore, this review evaluates the role of dietary fibre and bioactive compounds in these by-products as well as the potential interactions of both components and their implications for health, since the bioactive compounds associated with fibre may reach the colon, where they can be metabolised into postbiotic compounds, providing important health benefits (prebiotic, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, etc.). Consequently, this aspect, on which there are few studies, is very relevant and must be considered in the revaluation of by-products to obtain new ingredients for food processing with improved nutritional and technological properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The alarming growth of chronic diseases is a major problem in Europe, and current data suggest an even greater burden in the future. Although genetic predispositions remain important determinants in the development of certain disorders, the appropriate diet can considerably minimize the risk of many diseases. Many plant species do, in fact, have health-promoting properties due to their high levels of physiologically active chemicals. Glucosinolates, vitamins, tocopherols, saponins, tannins, and other polyphenols have been shown to have beneficial impacts on human health, including cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular, kidney, and Alzheimer's disease prevention. A new plant category known as microgreens has evolved as a rich source of vitamins, minerals, carotenoids, and physiologically active chemicals against these backdrops. Microgreens could have 10 to 100 times more effective phytochemical concentrations than adult equivalents. Furthermore, they are environmentally cultured in regulated environments with no dirt, harmful residues, or excessive water use. However, existing limitations include uncertain methods of action, varying bioaccessibility, and a paucity of published clinical research. Indeed, microgreens could be a viable new food source for people who are interested in consuming healthy diets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Non-enzymatic nitrile formation from glucosinolates in red cabbage is pH dependent. • Thermal stability of glucosinolates is mediated by different additives. • Amines formed from isothiocyanates are major hydrolysis products of glucosinolates. • Methylsulfinylalkyl amine levels increased during prolonged boiling of red cabbage. • Four different N , N '-dialkyl thioureas were quantified in boiled red cabbage. Red cabbage is a popular vegetable in Central Europe and a rich source of glucosinolates (GLSs). Upon hydrolysis, GLSs form health-promoting isothiocyanates (ITCs), but also nitriles and epithionitriles. Recently, ITCs were shown to undergo further hydrolysis, yielding amines. Here, we analyzed the degradation of GLSs and the formation of ITCs, nitriles, epithionitriles, and amines during domestic-like cooking of red cabbage with addition of vinegar or baking soda. Both additives strongly affected the stability of GLSs and the formation of nitriles during boiling. Primary amines were found as a major degradation product of GLSs. In control and vinegar samples, formation of methylsulfinylalkyl amines increased during boiling. Additionally, for the first time, the formation of several N , N '-dialk(en)yl thioureas during boiling of Brassica vegetables was demonstrated, resulting from the reaction of GLS-derived ITCs and amines, and they were subsequently quantified. As references, five N , N '-dialk(en)yl thioureas were synthesized and characterized by NMR and HRMS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Horseradish with its pungent taste and aroma has a long tradition of use as a spice and medicinal plant. It is most known to cure scurvy, due to its high vitamin C content. In the seventeenth century, utilization of horseradish changed from therapeutics to culinary. Today, consumption of horseradish has decreased even more since less time is spent on traditional cooking and preserving and new areas of use have developed. Its richness in glucosinolates makes it a possible cancer-preventive component in the diet and also a fungicide or pesticide. Horseradish peroxidase is used in medical research and analytical techniques and in detoxification of industrial wastewaters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Previous experiments have not considered in situ evaluations of CO2 enrichment on oilseed rape (OSR) under European climates with regard to energetic value and seed quality. Therefore, Brassica napus cv. Campino was grown in a free-air CO2 enrichment (FACE) field experiment at Stuttgart-Hohenheim (Germany) under ambient (388±9μll−1) and elevated (494±16μll−1) CO2 concentrations. Aboveground biomass production and energy yields of both straw and seeds increased, while energy contents per dry weight were identical in both CO2 treatments. Among the mineral concentrations in seeds, sulphur, boron and cadmium were significantly reduced and zinc and manganese tended to decrease (0.1≥ P >0.05) under elevated CO2. Total protein concentration declined significantly by 4.6% with CO2 enrichment, although increased seed yield (+18.4%) compensated for the change on a production basis. Accordingly, several proteinogenic amino acids per unit meal weight were significantly reduced (asparagine/aspartic acid, glycine, alanine, cysteine, valine, isoleucine, and leucine) or tended to decrease (glutamine/glutamic acid, methionine) in the high-CO2 treatment, resulting in higher carbon/nitrogen ratios. Amino acids on a per protein basis and total oil concentrations were unaffected, while oil yield per unit ground area tended to increase by 19.8%. Elevated CO2 slightly changed the composition of fatty acids on a per dry weight basis, which was more pronounced for unsaturated fatty acids. The concentration of major unsaturated fatty acids such as oleic acid increased significantly, while linolenic acid, nervonic acid and the group of essential fatty acids were decreased. There was also a negative trend for cis-11-eicosenic acid. The same holds true for the composition of fatty acids on a per oil basis. Among glucosinolates, only progoitrin tended to decrease under CO2 enrichment. The results indicate that elevated CO2 levels may have implications for food and feed quality and use for industrial processing of OSR in the future. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Due to the prognosticated warming in late autumn in northern and central Europe, the objective of this investigation was to establish whether temperature increase under low radiation conditions affect the content of phytochemicals such as carotenoids, chlorophylls and glucosinolates, and the also antioxidative effective ascorbic acid in broccoli. Greenhouse grown broccoli, cv. Marathon, was cultivated after head induction at three different daily mean temperatures (in the range from 7.2 to 19.7°C) under two different daily mean radiation levels (in the range from 1.9 to 13.4molm−2 day−1). Contents of ascorbic acid, lutein and alkyl glucosinolates (especially glucoraphanin) increased at daily mean temperatures between 7–13°C combined with a moderate daily mean radiation of 10–13molm−2 day−1. The alkyl glucosinolates glucoraphanin and glucoiberin increased 8-fold and ascorbic acid 0.5-fold, whereas the main indole glucosinolate glucobrassicin was reduced. The data provided here have implications for quality-oriented production and crop management strategies in warmed up autumn periods aiming to optimize health-promoting substance content in broccoli under low radiation conditions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A study of almost 800 Arabidopsis thaliana plants from across Europe reveals how the environment and evolutionary pressures shape their metabolites., Competing Interests: AK No competing interests declared, (© 2021, Korte.)

A library of ion trap MS2 spectra and HPLC retention times reported here allowed distinction in plants of at least 70 known glucosinolates (GSLs) and some additional proposed GSLs. We determined GSL profiles of selected members of the tribe Cardamineae (Brassicaceae) as well as Reseda (Resedaceae) used as outgroup in evolutionary studies. We included several accessions of each species and a range of organs, and paid attention to minor peaks and GSLs not detected. In this way, we obtained GSL profiles of Barbarea australis , Barbarea grayi , Planodes virginica selected for its apparent intermediacy between Barbarea and the remaining tribe and family, and Rorippa sylvestris and Nasturtium officinale , for which the presence of acyl derivatives of GSLs was previously untested. We also screened Armoracia rusticana , with a remarkably diverse GSL profile, the emerging model species Cardamine hirsuta , for which we discovered a GSL polymorphism, and Reseda luteola and Reseda odorata. The potential for aliphatic GSL biosynthesis in Barbarea vulgaris was of interest, and we subjected P-type and G-type B. vulgaris to several induction regimes in an attempt to induce aliphatic GSL. However, aliphatic GSLs were not detected in any of the B. vulgaris types. We characterized the investigated chemotypes phylogenetically, based on nuclear rDNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences, in order to understand their relation to the species B. vulgaris in general, and found them to be representative of the species as it occurs in Europe, as far as documented in available ITS-sequence repositories. In short, we provide GSL profiles of a wide variety of tribe Cardamineae plants and conclude aliphatic GSLs to be absent or below our limit of detection in two major evolutionary lines of B. vulgaris. Concerning analytical chemistry, we conclude that availability of authentic reference compounds or reference materials is critical for reliable GSL analysis and characterize two publicly available reference materials: seeds of P. virginica and N. officinale. [Display omitted] • Ion-trap HPLC-MS library of retention times and MS2 data for desulfoglucosinolates. • Conclusive GSL profiles of eight species from tribe Cardamineae. • Conclusive, systematic lists of glucosinolates not detected in investigated species. • Extensive search for aliphatic glucosinolates in Barbarea vulgaris with negative result. • DNA-based (ITS) characterization of two chemotypes of B. vulgaris. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plants produce diverse metabolites to cope with the challenges presented by complex and ever-changing environments. These challenges drive the diversification of specialized metabolites within and between plant species. However, we are just beginning to understand how frequently new alleles arise controlling specialized metabolite diversity and how the geographic distribution of these alleles may be structured by ecological and demographic pressures. Here, we measure the variation in specialized metabolites across a population of 797 natural Arabidopsis thaliana accessions. We show that a combination of geography, environmental parameters, demography and different genetic processes all combine to influence the specific chemotypes and their distribution. This showed that causal loci in specialized metabolism contain frequent independently generated alleles with patterns suggesting potential within-species convergence. This provides a new perspective about the complexity of the selective forces and mechanisms that shape the generation and distribution of allelic variation that may influence local adaptation., Competing Interests: EK, JL, BJ, HA, SA, CB, SH, CP, RA No competing interests declared, DK Reviewing editor, eLife, (© 2021, Katz et al.)

• Pak choi is a good dietary source of secondary metabolites. • Amur was particularly rich in carotenoids, glucosinolates, phenolics and vitamin K. • Steaming mostly retained more secondary metabolites than cooking. • A large portion of carotenoids and vitamin K was retained by domestic cooking. • The formation of undesired nitriles was inhibited by domestic cooking. Pak choi (Brassica rapa subsp. chinensis) is a leafy vegetable that is widely available in Asia and consumed in rising quantities in Europe. Pak choi contains high levels of secondary plant metabolites, such as carotenoids, chlorophylls, glucosinolates, phenolic compounds, and vitamin K, which are beneficial for humans if consumed on a regular basis. The evaluation of the genotype-induced variation of secondary plant metabolites revealed that the cultivar 'Amur' contained the highest concentration of secondary plant metabolites. Furthermore, steaming retained more chlorophylls, glucosinolates, phenolic acids and flavonoid compounds than boiling. In contrast, both domestic cooking methods – boiling, and steaming – reduced the formation of glucosinolate breakdown products, especially the undesired epithionitriles and nitriles but less of the health-beneficial isothiocyanates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glucosinolates are secondary plant compounds typically found in members of the Brassicaceae and a few other plant families. Usually each plant species contains a specific subset of the ∼ 130 different glucosinolates identified to date. However, intraspecific variation in glucosinolate profiles is commonly found. Sinalbin (4-hydroxybenzyl glucosinolate) so far has been identified as the main glucosinolate of the heavy metal accumulating plant species Noccaea caerulescens (Brassicaceae). However, a screening of 13 N. caerulescens populations revealed that in 10 populations a structurally related glucosinolate was found as the major component. Based on nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectrometry analyses of the intact glucosinolate as well as of the products formed after enzymatic conversion by sulfatase or myrosinase, this compound was identified as 4-α-rhamnosyloxy benzyl glucosinolate (glucomoringin). So far, glucomoringin had only been reported as the main glucosinolate of Moringa spp. (Moringaceae) which are tropical tree species. There was no apparent relation between the level of soil pollution at the location of origin, and the presence of glucomoringin. The isothiocyanate that is formed after conversion of glucomoringin is a potent antimicrobial and antitumor agent. It has yet to be established whether glucomoringin or its breakdown product have an added benefit to the plant in its natural habitat., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Variety and crop management strategies affect the content of bioactive compounds (phenolics, flavonoids and glucosinolates) in green broccoli (calabrese) types, which are cultivated during summer and autumn in temperate European climates. Sprouting broccoli types are morphologically distinct and are grown over the winter season and harvested until early spring. Thus they show considerable potential for development as an import substitution crop for growers and consumers during the 'hungry gap' of early spring. The present study investigated the effect of variety and management practices on phytochemical content in a range of sprouting broccoli varieties., Results: Yields were significantly higher in white sprouting broccoli varieties. Levels of phenolics and flavonoids were in the range 81.64-297.65 and 16.95-104.80 mg 100 g⁻¹ fresh weight, respectively, depending on year and cultivar, and were highest in variety 'TZ 5052' in both years. In-row spacing did not affect flavonoid content. Phenolic and flavonoid content generally increased with increasing floret maturity and levels were high in edible portions of the crop. Crop wastes (leaf and flower) contained 145.9-239.3 and 21.5-116.6 mg 100 g⁻¹ fresh weight total phenolics and flavonoids, respectively, depending on cultivar, tissue and year. Climatic factors had a significant effect on phenolic and flavonoid content. Levels of total and some individual glucosinolates were higher in sprouting broccoli than in the green broccoli variety 'Ironman'., Conclusion: Levels of total phenolics, flavonoids and glucosinolates are higher in sprouting than green broccoli types. Sprouting broccoli represents an excellent source of dietary bioactive compounds., (© 2013 Society of Chemical Industry.)