Sprouts and microgreens, the edible seedlings of vegetables and herbs, have received increasing attention in recent years and are considered as functional foods or superfoods owing to their valuable health-promoting properties. In particular, the seedlings of broccoli (Brassica oleracea L. var. Italica) have been highly prized for their substantial amount of bioactive constituents, including glucosinolates, phenolic compounds, vitamins, and essential minerals. These secondary metabolites are positively associated with potential health benefits. Numerous in vitro and in vivo studies demonstrated that broccoli seedlings possess various biological properties, including antioxidant, anticancer, anticancer, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, anti-obesity and antidiabetic activities. The present review summarizes the updated knowledge about bioactive compounds and bioactivities of these broccoli products and discusses the relevant mechanisms of action. This review will serve as a potential reference for food selections of consumers and applications in functional food and nutraceutical industries.

Broccoli sprouts are an excellent source of health-promoting phytochemicals such as vitamins, glucosinolates, and phenolics. The study aimed to investigate in vitro antioxidant, antiproliferative, apoptotic, and antibacterial activities of broccoli sprouts. Five-day-old sprouts extracted by 70% ethanol showed significant antioxidant activities, analyzed to be 68.8 μmol Trolox equivalent (TE)/g dry weight by 2,2′-azino-bis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic (ABTS) assay, 91% scavenging by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay, 1.81 absorbance by reducing power assay, and high phenolic contents by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Thereafter, sprout extract indicated considerable antiproliferative activities towards A549 (lung carcinoma cells), HepG2 (hepatocellular carcinoma cells), and Caco-2 (colorectal adenocarcinoma cells) using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, with IC₅₀ values of 0.117, 0.168 and 0.189 mg/mL for 48 h, respectively. Furthermore, flow cytometry confirmed that Caco-2 cells underwent apoptosis by an increase of cell percentage in subG1 phase to 31.3%, and a loss of mitochondrial membrane potential to 19.3% after 48 h of treatment. Afterward, the extract exhibited notable antibacterial capacities against Bacillus subtilis and Salmonella Typhimurium with minimum inhibition concentration (MIC) values of 0.39 and 0.78 mg/mL, appropriately, along with abilities against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli with an MIC value of 1.56 mg/mL. Thus, broccoli sprouts were confirmed as a potential food source for consumers’ selection and functional food industry.

The altered circulating bile acids (BAs) modulate gut microbiota, energy metabolism and various physiological functions. BA profiles in liver, serum, ileum and feces of HFD-fed mice were analyzed with normal chow diet (NCD)-fed mice after 16-week feeding. Furthermore, gut microbiota was analyzed and its correlation analysis with BA was performed. The result showed that long-term HFD feeding significantly decreased hepatic and serum BA levels, mainly attributed to the inhibition of hepatic BA synthesis and the reduced reabsorption efficiency of BAs in enterohepatic circulation. It also significantly impaired glucose and lipid homeostasis and gut microbiota in mice. We found significantly higher bile salt hydrolase activity in ileal microbes and a higher ratio of free BAs to conjugated BA content in ileal contents in HFD groups compared with NCD group mice, which might account for the activated intestinal farnesoid X receptor signaling on liver BA synthesis inhibition and reduced ileal reabsorption. The decreased circulating BAs were associated with the dysregulation of the lipid metabolism according to the decreased TGR5 signaling in the ileum and BAT. In addition, it is astonishing to find extremely high percentages of taurocholate and 12-OH BAs in liver and serum BA profiles of both groups, which was mainly attributed to the high substrate selectivity for 12-OH BAs of the intestinal BAs transporter during the ileal reabsorption of enterohepatic circulation. This study revealed a significant effect of long-term HFD feeding on the decreased circulating BA pool in mice, which impaired lipid homeostasis and gut microbiota, and collectively resulted in metabolic disorders and obesity.

Broccoli contains a substantial amount of bioactive compounds such as glucosinolates, phenolics, and essential nutrients, which are positively linked to health-promoting effects. This work aimed to evaluate whether both edible and non-edible parts of broccoli could be effective by examining in vitro antioxidant, cytotoxic, apoptotic, and antibacterial properties of its floret, leaf, and seed extracts (FE, LE, and SE, correspondingly). High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and various assays exhibited strong antioxidant activities of all samples. LE obtained the highest capacity, correlated to its polyphenolic contents. SE exerted significant cytotoxicity against A549, Caco-2, and HepG2 cancer cell lines at low inhibitory concentration (IC)₅₀ values (0.134, 0.209, and 0.238 mg/mL, respectively), as tested by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Flow cytometry confirmed apoptosis induction of extracts in Caco-2 cells by revealing an increased subG1 population and a decreased mitochondrial membrane potential. The considerable antibacterial efficacy was observed in either LE and SE against Bacillus subtilis and Salmonella typhimurium (0.39–0.78 mg/mL) using well-agar diffusion and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) techniques, along with the weak activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli (1.56–3.13 mg/mL). The findings suggest that broccoli and its byproducts might serve as a promising source for further development of food or pharmaceutical products.