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Cruciferous vegetables have been reported to be a great source of anti-inflammatory compounds.

Cruciferous vegetables have been reported to be a great source of anti-inflammatory compounds. Specifically, sprouts from the Brassicaceae family stand out for their high content of glucosinolates (and their bioactive derivatives, isothiocyanates), phenolic acids, and anthocyanins. Despite the evident anti-inflammatory activity of certain Brassica phytochemicals such as sulforaphane or phenolic acids, the effect of digested Brassica vegetables on inflammation remains understudied. In this work, we aimed to evaluate the anti-inflammatory potential of the bioaccessible forms of cruciferous bioactives (from red cabbage sprouts (RCS) and red radish sprouts (RRS)) obtained upon

Macrophages have emerged as important therapeutic targets in many human diseases. The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of broccoli membrane vesicles and sulphoraphane (SFN), either free or encapsulated, on the activity of human monocyte-derived M1 and M2 macrophage primary culture. Our results show that exposure for 24 h to SFN 25 µM, free and encapsulated, induced a potent reduction on the activity of human M1 and M2 macrophages, downregulating proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines and phagocytic capability on C. albicans. The broccoli membrane vesicles do not represent inert nanocarriers, as they have low amounts of bioactive compounds, being able to modulate the cytokine production, depending on the inflammatory state of the cells. They could induce opposite effects to that of higher doses of SFN, reflecting its hormetic effect. These data reinforce the potential use of broccoli compounds as therapeutic agents not only for inflammatory diseases, but they also open new clinical possibilities for applications in other diseases related to immunodeficiency, autoimmunity, or in cancer therapy. Considering the variability of their biological effects in different scenarios, a proper therapeutic strategy with Brassica bioactive compounds should be designed for each pathology.

Background: Cauliflower (Brassica oleracea L. var. botrytis) inflorescences are composed mainly of meristematic tissue, which has a high cellular proliferation. This considerable cellular density makes the inflorescence an organ with a large proportion of membranes. However, little is known about the specific role of the lipid and protein composition of the plasma membrane present in this organ. Results: In this work, we analyzed the lipids and proteins present in plasma membrane from two different stages of development of cauliflower inflorescence and compared them with leaf plasma membrane. For this purpose, plasma membrane vesicles were obtained by centrifugation for each sample and the vesicular diameter and osmotic permeability (Pf) were analyzed by dynamic light scattering and the stopped-flow technique, respectively. In addition, fatty acids and sterols were analyzed by gas chromatography and HPLC. The protein composition of the inflorescences and leaves was characterized by HPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS and the data obtained were compared with Brassicaceae proteins present in the UniProt database in relation to the presence of aquaporins determined by western blot analysis. The highest Pf value was found in 90 day inflorescences-derived plasma membrane vesicles (61.4 ± 4.14 μms). For sterols and fatty acids, the concentrations varied according to the organ of origin. The protein profile revealed the presence of aquaporins from the PIP1 and PIP2 subfamilies in both inflorescences and leaves. Conclusion: This study shows that the composition of the sterols, the degree of unsaturation of the fatty acids, and the proteins present in the membranes analyzed give them high functionality for water passage. This represents an important addition to the limited information available in this field., This work was funded by the CDTI, Spain (BIOTAGUT) and by the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades (AGL2016–80247-C2–1-R) for the study, collection, analysis, and in writing the manuscript. P. García-Ibañez was funded by a grant from the Fundación Séneca-CARM, Spain (21273/FPI/19) for the interpretation of data and in writing the manuscript

Environmental changes cause abiotic stress in plants, primarily through alterations in the uptake of the nutrients and water they require for their metabolism and growth and to maintain their cellular homeostasis. The plasma membranes of cells contain transporter proteins, encoded by their specific genes, responsible for the uptake of nutrients and water (aquaporins). However, their interregulation has rarely been taken into account. Therefore, in this review we identify how the plant genome responds to abiotic stresses such as nutrient deficiency, drought, salinity and low temperature, in relation to both nutrient transporters and aquaporins. Some general responses or regulation mechanisms can be observed under each abiotic stress such as the induction of plasma membrane transporter expression during macronutrient deficiency, the induction of tonoplast transporters and reduction of aquaporins during micronutrients deficiency. However, drought, salinity and low temperatures generally cause an increase in expression of nutrient transporters and aquaporins in tolerant plants. We propose that both types of transporters (nutrients and water) should be considered jointly in order to better understand plant tolerance of stresses., This work was funded by the Spanish Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad (AGL2016-80247-C2-1-R).

Phenolic compounds and glucosinolates are secondary plant metabolites that play fundamental roles in plant resistance to abiotic stress. These compounds have been found to increase in stress situations related to plant adaptive capacity. This review assesses the functions of phenolic compounds and glucosinolates in plant interactions involving abiotic stresses such as drought, salinity, high temperature, metals toxicity, and mineral deficiency or excess. Furthermore, their relation with water uptake and transport mediated through aquaporins is reviewed. In this way, the increases of phenolic compounds and glucosinolate synthesis have been related to primary responses to abiotic stress and induction of resistance. Thus, their metabolic pathways, root exudation, and external application are related to internal cell and tissue movement, with a lack of information in this latter aspect.

Foliar fertilization is becoming very popular since it is highly efficient, minimizes contamination, and is target oriented. However, the low mobility of several nutrients and low penetration through the leaf cuticle should be addressed, to establish an efficient leaf applied fertilizer. During the last few years, nanotechnologies – such as nanocarriers - have been studied with regard to improving the penetration and delivery of compounds. This work describes the use of membrane vesicles obtained from Brassica oleracea L. as nanobiocarriers of Zn and the evaluation of their potential as a foliar fertilizer, also in Brassica. The results show a high Zn encapsulation efficiency and high delivery into protoplasts. Also, the foliar fertilization experiments demonstrated a very effective system of Zn nanofertilization.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of the red cabbage extracts on the bioaccessibility of their isothiocyanates, and their effect on the intestinal microbiota using a dynamic model of human digestion treated with the gut microbiome of obese adults. The elicitation of red cabbage plants with methyl jasmonate (MeJA) duplicated the content of glucosinolates (GSLs) in the plant organs used for elaborating the encapsulated formula. The use of plasma membrane vesicles, according to a proper methodology and technology, showed a high retention of sulforaphane (SFN) and indol-3-carbinol (I3C) over the course of the 14-day digestion study. The microbiome was scarcely affected by the treatments in terms of microbiota composition or the Bacteroidetes/Firmicutes ratio, but a 3 to 4-fold increase was observed in the production of butyric acid with the encapsulated extract treatment. Based on our pilot red cabbage extract study, the consumption of this extract, mainly encapsulated, may play a potential role in the management of obesity in adults.

© 2020 by the authors, Endometriosis is a chronic, inflammatory, hormone-dependent disease characterized by histological lesions produced by the presence of endometrial tissue outside the uterine cavity. Despite the fact that an estimated 176 million women are affected worldwide by this gynecological disorder, risk factors that cause endometriosis have not been properly defined and current treatments are not efficient. Although the interaction between diet and human health has been the focus of many studies, little information about the correlation of foods and their bioactive derivates with endometriosis is available. In this framework, Brassica crops have emerged as potential candidates for ameliorating the chronic inflammatory condition of endometriosis, due to their abundant content of health-promoting compounds such as glucosinolates and their hydrolysis products, isothiocyanates. Several inflammation-related signaling pathways have been included among the known targets of isothiocyanates, but those involving aquaporin water channels have an important role in endometriosis. Therefore, the aim of this review is to highlight the promising effects of the phytochemicals present in Brassica spp. as major candidates for inclusion in a dietary approach aiming to improve the inflammatory condition of women affected with endometriosis. This review points out the potential roles of glucosinolates and isothiocyanates from Brassicas as anti-inflammatory compounds, which might contribute to a reduction in endometriosis symptoms. In view of these promising results, further investigation of the effect of glucosinolates on chronic inflammatory diseases, either as diet coadjuvants or as therapeutic molecules, should be performed. In addition, we highlight the involvement of aquaporins in the maintenance of immune homeostasis. In brief, glucosinolates and the modulation of cellular water by aquaporins could shed light on new approaches to improve the quality of life for women with endometriosis., This work was funded by Fundación Seneca—Murcia Regional Agency for Science and Technology through the Project Ref. 20855/PI/18. P.G.-I. was funded by a grant from the Fundación Séneca-CARM, Spain (21273/FPI/19), and L.Y.-M. was funded by a grant from the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia, Educación y Universidades (FPU17/02261). This work was also partially supported by the Spanish Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad under Grant AGL2016-80247-C2-1-R.

© 2020 by the authors., Brassica vegetables and their components, the glucosinolates, have been suggested as good candidates as dietary coadjutants to improve health in non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Different preclinical and clinical studies have been performed in the last decade; however, some concerns have been posed on the lack of established and standardized protocols. The different concentration of bioactive compounds used, time of intervention or sample size, and the lack of blinding are some factors that may influence the studies’ outcomes. This review aims to analyze the critical points of the studies performed with Brassica-related biomolecules and propose some bases for future trials in order to avoid biases., This research was partially supported by Fundación Seneca, Murcia Regional Agency for Science and Technology, Project 20855/PI/18., eng

Alteration of the secondary metabolism is one the responses of plants to environmental changes. As part of this secondary metabolism, Brassicaceae is distinguished by the presence of numerous bioactive compounds with health-promoting properties such as glucosinolates, phenolics and anthocyanins. These bioactive compounds are enhanced after elicitors’ application in sprouts and young plants. The most effective pathway involved in such enhancement has been reported to be related to jasmonic acid (JA). JA and its volatile methyl ester methyl jasmonate (MeJa) act through transduction pathway resulting in a significant accumulation of glucosinolates and flavonoids. However, optimization of secondary metabolites production depended on crop, concentration of MeJa, number of applications, and developmental stage of the plant. As the effects of MeJa on phytochemicals on Bimi® (a new commercial broccoli coming from a hybrid between conventional broccoli and Chinese cabbage) and red cabbage, have not been studied in adult plants, in this work, we were focused on the effects on production of secondary metabolites and mineral concentrations in commercial plants. Also, the evaluation of the quality and stability of extracts was carried out. The increases of bioactive compounds obtained were promising for obtaining high quality extracts.

Background Cruciferous foods rich in health-promoting metabolites are of particular interest to consumers as well as being a good source of bioactives-enriched ingredients. Several elicitors have been used to stimulate the biosynthesis and accumulation of secondary metabolites in foods; however, little is known about the response of new hybrid varieties, such as Bimi®, under field-crop production conditions. Therefore, this study was designed to evaluate the effect of salicylic acid (200 μmol L-1 , SA), methyl jasmonate (100 μmol L-1 , MeJA), and their combination on Bimi plant organs (inflorescences and aerial vegetative tissues - stems and leaves). For this, the composition of the glucosinolates present in the tissues was evaluated. Also, aqueous extracts of the plant material, obtained with different times of extraction with boiling water, were studied. Results The results indicate that the combined treatment (SA + MeJA) significantly increased the content of glucosinolates in the inflorescences and that MeJA was the most effective elicitor in leaves. Regarding the aqueous extracts, the greatest amount of glucosinolates was extracted at 30 min - except for the leaves elicited with MeJA, for which 15 min was optimal. Conclusion The elicitation in the field enriched leaves in glucobrassicin (GB), 4-methoxyglucobrassicin (MGB), and neoglucobrassicin (NGB) and stems and inflorescences in glucoraphanin, 4-hydroxyglucobrassicin, GB, MGB, and NGB. In this way, this enhanced vegetable material favored the presence of bioactives in the extracts, which is of great interest regarding enriched foods and ingredients with added value obtained from them. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry.

Elicitation is an economic and sustainable technique for increasing the content of secondary metabolites, mainly bioactive compounds, in plants grown for better human nutrition. The aim of this study was to compare the physiological responses (water relations and mineral nutrition) and the enrichment in glucosinolates (GLSs) and phenolic compounds of broccoli plants (Brassica oleracea L. var. italica) receiving different elicitation treatments. The treatments involved the priming of seeds with KCl and the exposure of plants to elicitors, including K2SO4 and NaCl solutions and foliar sprays of methyl jasmonate (MeJA), salicylic acid (SA), and methionine (Met). The physiological response of the plants in terms of root hydraulic conductance was improved by priming with KCl and elicitation with MeJA or Met. Foliar application of Met significantly increased the plant biomass and enhanced mineral nutrition. In general, all treatments increased the accumulation of indole GLSs, but K2SO4 and MeJA gave the best response and MeJA also favored the formation of a newly described compound, cinnamic-GLS, in the plants. Also, the use of Met and SA as elicitors and the supply of K2SO4 increased the abundance of phenolic compounds; K2SO4 also enhanced growth but did not alter the water relations or the accumulation of mineral nutrients. Therefore, although the response to elicitation was positive, with an increased content of bioactive compounds, regulation of the water relations and of the mineral status of the broccoli plants was critical to maintain the yield.

Biochar has attracted great attention in the soil scientific community for its interaction with different biogeochemical cycles and its potential environmental and agronomical benefits. However, there is only limited information about its effect on plant secondary metabolism. In this manuscript, a biochar produced from olive tree pruning by slow pyrolysis at 600 °C was selected to analyze its impact on the concentration of the health-promoting compounds glucosinolates (GLSs) in broccoli. The biochar was applied as soil amendment, alone or combined with organic and mineral fertilization, in a broccoli cultivar in the field. We found that this particular biochar caused an enrichment in GLSs concentration in broccoli amended with biochar alone. Meanwhile, the fertilized treatments caused a decrease in the GLSs concentration in broccoli inflorescence, particularly mineral fertilization originated the lowest concentration of neoglucobrassicin and glucoraphanin. When biochar was combined with mineral fertilization it increased the concentration of GLS to similar levels as the untreated plants, probably as a physiological response of the plant to the enhanced physicochemical properties of biochar amended soils. These findings highlight the importance of agronomical practices in achieving a balance between a good performance in production and the presence of beneficial phytochemicals.

In animals and plants, membrane vesicles containing proteins have been defined as key for biological systems involving different processes such as trafficking or intercellular communication. Docking and fusion of vesicles to the plasma membrane occur in living cells in response to different stimuli, such as environmental changes or hormones, and therefore play an important role in cell homeostasis as vehicles for certain proteins or other substances. Because aquaporins enhance the water permeability of membranes, their role as proteins immersed in vesicles formed of natural membranes is a recent topic of study. They regulate numerous physiological processes and could hence serve new biotechnological purposes. Thus, in this review, we have explored the physiological implications of the trafficking of aquaporins, the mechanisms that control their transit, and the proteins that coregulate the migration. In addition, the importance of exosomes containing aquaporins in the cell-to-cell communication processes in animals and plants have been analyzed, together with their potential uses in biomedicine or biotechnology. The properties of aquaporins make them suitable for use as biomarkers of different aquaporin-related diseases when they are included in exosomes. Finally, the fact that these proteins could be immersed in biomimetic membranes opens future perspectives for new biotechnological applications., This work was funded by the Spanish Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad (AGL2016-80247-C2-1-R).