Title:Vegetable Organosulfur Compounds and their Health Promoting Effects
VOLUME: 23 ISSUE: 19
Author(s):Spyridon Petropoulos*, Francesco Di Gioia and Georgia Ntatsi
Affiliation:University of Thessaly, School of Agricultural Sciences, Fytokou Street, 38446, N. Ionia, Magnissia, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, South West Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Immokalee, Florida, Faculty of Crop Science, Agricultural University of Athens, Athens
Keywords:Alliin, allium, brassica, garlic, glucosinolates, onion, thiosulfinates.
Abstract:Background: Trends in modern pharmaceutical science show an increase in demand for new drugs and
diet supplements derived from natural products, while during the last decades, great research is conducted regarding
the natural compounds and their medicinal and bioactive properties. Organosulfur compounds are present in
many plants and their bioactive properties have been used in folk and traditional medicine throughout the centuries.
Not until recently, modern science confirmed and revealed the chemical compounds that are responsible for
these properties, the chemistry involved in their biosynthesis and the main mechanisms of action.
Objective: In the present review, the organosulfur compounds of vegetable origin and their health effects are
presented, focusing on the chemical composition of their main compounds, their biosynthesis and the mechanisms
involved in their health effects. Sulfur compound sources presented include mainly vegetable species belonging
to Allium genus and Brassicaceae family.
Conclusion: Organosulfur compounds of vegetable sources are very important in human diet, and their regular
consumption has a beneficial contribution to health and well-being. Moreover, their medicinal properties and
therapeutic effects have been described thousands of years ago, while they constitute an important ingredient in
traditional medicines and preparations. However, not until recently, the mechanisms of action of organosulfur
compounds have started to unravel, with promising results for further exploitation of these significant bioactive
compounds in drug development and novel nutraceutical products. This review reveals the numerous biological
activities of organosulfur compounds of vegetable origin, while it also presents the results of recent clinical studies
and trials.
