Glucosinolates

Glucosinolates are sulfur- and nitrogen-containing plant metabolites characteristic of the order Brassicales. Plants store them apart from myrosinase enzymes, which release reactive products when tissues are damaged.

Myrosinase: Myrosinase is a plant enzyme that hydrolyzes glucosinolates into glucose and unstable reaction products. It is stored separately from glucosinolates until tissue disruption allows the reaction to begin.
Glucose: Glucose is a six-carbon monosaccharide and a major cellular energy source. Each glucosinolate contains a glucose group that myrosinase removes during hydrolysis.
Cruciferous vegetables: Cruciferous vegetables are edible plants in the family Brassicaceae, including broccoli, cabbage, and mustard greens. These foods are common dietary sources of glucosinolates.
Brassicales: Brassicales is an order of flowering plants that includes the mustard family and many glucosinolate-producing species. Glucosinolates are characteristic of this plant order, though their distribution varies among lineages.
Plant defense against herbivores: Plant defense against herbivores comprises physical and chemical traits that reduce feeding or its consequences. Glucosinolate-derived products can deter, poison, or otherwise affect feeding insects and other herbivores.
Isothiocyanates: Isothiocyanates are compounds containing the functional group –N=C=S, formed from many glucosinolates after hydrolysis. They are prominent pungent products of glucosinolate breakdown and contribute to plant defense.
Thiohydroximate-O-sulfate: Thiohydroximate-O-sulfate is the conserved sulfur-containing core structure shared by glucosinolates. This structural core distinguishes glucosinolates from other plant metabolites and remains after side-chain variation.
Sulforaphane: Sulforaphane is an isothiocyanate formed from the glucosinolate glucoraphanin, abundant in broccoli and related plants. It is a well-studied glucosinolate-derived compound investigated for effects on cellular defense pathways.
CYP79 enzymes: CYP79 enzymes are cytochrome P450 enzymes that convert amino-acid-derived substrates into aldoximes during glucosinolate biosynthesis. They catalyze an early step that channels amino-acid precursors into the pathway.
Specialist herbivores: Specialist herbivores are animals adapted to feed on a narrow range of host plants. Some specialists tolerate or redirect glucosinolate defenses, turning a plant defense into a dietary cue.

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