Cruciferous vegetables are a valuable source of ingredients with health benefits. The most characteristic compounds of cruciferous vegetables with identified anticancer properties are glucosinolates. Young shoots and sprouts of red cabbage are becoming a popular fresh food rich in nutrients and bioactive compounds. The objective of this research was to determine, for the first time in a comprehensive approach, whether young shoots of red headed cabbage are a better source of selected nutrients and glucosinolates in the human diet in comparison to the vegetable at full maturity. The proximate composition (protein, fat, digestible carbohydrates, fiber), fatty acids profile, minerals (calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, iron, zinc, manganese, copper), as well as glucosinolates were examined. The red headed cabbage was characterized by a significantly larger amount of dry matter, and total and digestible carbohydrates in comparison to young shoots. The ready-to-eat young shoots, which are in the phase of intensive growth, are a better source of protein, selected minerals, and especially glucosinolates. The level of some nutrients can be enhanced and the intake of pro-healthy glucosinolates can be significantly increased by including young shoots of red cabbage into the diet.

The increasing knowledge on health benefit properties of plant origin food ingredients supports recommendations for the use of edible plants in the prevention of diet related diseases, including cancer. The beneficial effects of young shoots of red cabbage can be attributed to their mixture of phytochemicals possessing antioxidant and potential anticancer activity. The objective of this study was to compare the content of bioactive compounds, including HPLC analysis of polyphenols and antioxidant activity of young shoots of red cabbage and the vegetable at full maturity. The content of vitamin C and polyphenols in juices obtained from young shoots and the mature vegetable were also determined. The other aim of this study was to confirm the hypothesis that juice of young shoots more effectively, compared to juice of the mature vegetable, reduces the proliferation of prostate cancer cell lines DU145 and LNCaP in vitro. A significantly higher content of vitamin C and carotenoids, as well as a higher antioxidant activity were found in edible young shoots in comparison to the mature vegetable. In addition, studies have shown higher amount of vitamin C in the juice of young shoots than in the juice of the mature vegetable and similar content of polyphenolic compounds. The level of total polyphenol content in the studied plant samples did not differ significantly. Flavonoids were the main polyphenols in young shoots and juice obtained from them, while phenolic acids were dominant in the mature vegetable and in juice obtained from it. The juice of young shoots has shown stronger in vitro anti-proliferation effect against prostate cancer cells than juice of the mature vegetable.

Natural polysaccharides, including hyaluronic acid, find a wide range of applications in biomedical sciences. There is a growing interest in nanocomposites containing hyaluronic acid and nanoparticles such as nanometals or graphene. In this study, we prepared foils of pure sodium hyaluronate and sodium hyaluronate containing nanosilver, graphene oxide, nanosilver/graphene oxide and characterized their properties. UV-vis spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed the formation of 10–20 nm silver nanoparticles. The structural changes were investigated using Fourier transforms infrared (FTIR) spectra and size exclusion chromatography. The obtained results suggest changes in molecular weights in the samples containing nanoparticles, which was highest in a sample containing nanosilver/graphene oxide. We also assessed the mechanical properties of the foils (thickness, tensile strength and elongation at break) and their wettability. The foils containing nanosilver and nanosilver/graphene oxide presented bacteriostatic activity against E. coli, Staphylococcus spp. and Bacillus spp., which was not observed in the control and sample containing graphene oxide. The composites containing graphene oxide and nanosilver/graphene oxide exhibited a cytotoxic effect on human melanoma WM266-4 cell lines (ATCC, Manassas, VA, USA).

In this study, multilayer microcapsules (two-layer and four-layer) based on furcellaran (FUR) and chitosan (CHIT) were produced, enclosing a tripeptide with an antioxidant effect—glutathione—in different concentrations. In addition, for the first time, an empty, four-layer microcapsule based on CHIT and FUR (ECAPS) was obtained, which can be used to contain sensitive, active substances of a hydrophobic nature. Layering was monitored using zeta potential, and the presence of the resulting capsules was confirmed by SEM imaging. In the current study, we also investigated whether the studied capsules had any effect on the Hep G2 cancer cell line. An attempt was also made to identify the possible molecular mechanism(s) by which the examined capsules suppressed the growth of Hep G2 cells. In this report, we demonstrate that the capsules suppressed the growth of cancer cells. This mechanism was linked to the modulation of the AKT/PI3K signaling pathway and the induction of the G2/M arrest cell cycle. Furthermore, the results indicate that the tested multilayer microcapsules induced cell death through an apoptotic pathway.

Modern medicine is struggling with the problem of fully effective treatment of neoplastic diseases despite deploying innovative chemotherapeutic agents. Therefore, undertaking cancer-prevention measures, such as proper eating habits, should be strongly recommended. The present research aimed to compare the effects of juice from young shoots of beetroot compared to juice from root at full maturity on human breast cancer and normal cells. The juice from young shoots, both in the native and digested form, was most often a significantly stronger inhibitor of the proliferation of both analyzed breast cancer cell lines (MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231), compared to the native and digested juice from red beetroot. Regardless of juice type, a significantly greater reduction was most often shown in the proliferation of estrogen-dependent cells (MCF-7 line) than of estrogen-independent cells (MDA-MB-231 line). All analyzed types of beetroot juice and, in particular, the ones from young shoots and the root subjected to digestion and absorption, exerted an antiproliferative and apoptotic effect (pinpointing the internal apoptosis pathway) on the cells of both cancer lines studied. There is a need to continue the research to comprehensively investigate the factors responsible for both these effects.

In our previous study, we showed that fatty acids from CLA-enriched egg yolks (EFA-CLA) reduced the proliferation of breast cancer cells; however, the molecular mechanisms of their action remain unknown. In the current study, we used MCF-7 breast cancer cell line to determine the effect of EFA-CLA, as potential ligands for peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), on identified in silico PPAR-responsive genes:BCAR3,TCF20,WT1,ZNF621, andTHRB(transcript TRβ2). Our results showed that EFA-CLA act as PPAR ligands with agonistic activity for all PPAR isoforms, with the highest specificity towards PPARγ. In conclusion, we propose that EFA-CLA-mediated regulation of PPAR-responsive genes is most likely facilitated bycis9,trans11CLAisomer incorporated in egg yolk. Notably, EFA-CLA activated PPAR more efficiently than nonenriched FA as well as synthetic CLA isomers. We also propose that this regulation, at least in part, can be responsible for the observed reduction in the proliferation of MCF-7 cells treated with EFA-CLA.