Sulforaphane from broccoli helps to clean damaged lungs.
13 Apr 2011
J Valverde
Today New Scientist magazine gave more reasons to eat broccoli. Broccoli and other brassicas such as cabbage and Brussels sprouts are rich in glucoraphanin. Glucorphanin hydrolysis leads to another compound called Sulforaphane when the plant tissue is disrupted (when we blend it or chew it).
Sulforaphane is of high scientific relevance due to its multiple and remarkable biological active and disease prevention properties. For example, sulforaphane has proved to be an effective chemopreventive agent against cancer in several models (cell culture, carcinogen induced and genetic animal cancer model). Sulforaphane intervenes in the role of biotransformation enzymes (Phase I and Phase II), which catalyze reactions to eliminate carcinogens from our body.
However, a new study has revealed that sulforaphane could be very helpful for people suffering from lung diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and to smokers. In regular conditions lungs are cleared out by white blood cells by eliminating debris and bacteria that might lead to infections. In presence of sulforaphane the chemical pathway that regulates this function (Nrf-2) in white blood cells is restored. Sulforaphane seems to improve the functionality of already existing cells rather than activate more of them.
For further details on this work:
Harvey CJ, Thimmulappa RK, Sethi S, Kong X, Yarmus L, Brown RH, Feller-Kopman D, Wise R, Biswal S (2011) Targeting Nrf2 Signaling Improves Bacterial Clearance by Alveolar Macrophages in Patients with COPD and in a Mouse Model. Science Translational Medicine 3 (78):78ra32. doi:10.1126/scitranslmed.3002042
