STUDY REVEALS: HOW BROCCOLI PROTECTS AGAINST CANCER
U.S. researchers have discovered a cellular process that explains how cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli work to prevent breast cancer.
Researchers at the University of California in Santa Barbara Laboratories reported that Breast Cancer can be protected against by eating cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower. These vegetables contain compounds called isothiocyanates believed to be responsible for the cancer-preventive and anti-carcinogenic activities in these vegetables.
Researchers said the isothiocyanate – sulforaphane – inhibits the proliferation of human tumor cells in a way similar to that in which anti-cancer drugs inhibit cell division during mitosis. Mitosis is the process in which the duplicated DNA in the form of chromosomes is accurately distributed to the two daughter cells when a cell divides.
While sulforaphane interferes with microtubule functioning during mitosis in a similar manner to anti-cancer drugs, it is much weaker than the drugs, and is therefore much less toxic.
Researchers reported that Sulforaphane may be an effective cancer preventive agent because it inhibits the proliferation and kills precancerous cells.
(Source: UPI, December 25,2008)
