Isothiocyanates as Potential Antifungal Agents: A Mini-Review

Abstract

Cruciferous vegetables and mustard oil are rich in the glucosinolate group of molecules. Isothiocyanates are an important group of glucosinolate derivatives. These derivatives have various bioactive properties, including antioxidant, antibacterial, anticarcinogenic, antifungal, antiparasitic, herbicidal and antimutagenic activity. Previous studies indicate that regular intake of such vegetables may considerably reduce the incidence of various types of cancer. These studies have inspired studies where the bioactive agents of these plants have been isolated and explored for their therapeutic applications. The use of these bioactive compounds as antifungals could be a new therapeutic approach against human pathogenic fungi. Isothiocyanates have been studied for their antifungal activity and have the potential to be used for antifungal therapy.

Plain language summary

Vegetables like cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli have a distinct flavor because of chemicals called glucosinolates. Whenever we cut and eat these vegetables, glucosinolates are broken down into isothiocyanates. Glucosinolates and isothiocyanates have health benefits because they stop the growth of bacteria, parasites and fungi that cause disease, such as Candida albicans. They may also prevent cancer, as regularly eating these vegetables has been shown to reduce the development of some types of cancer in humans. Investigation is needed to explore how glucosinolates and isothiocyanates could be used to treat fungal infections.

Tweetable abstract

Vegetables like cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli are rich in glucosinolates and their derivatives, such as isothiocyanates, which have bioactive properties, including antifungal, antibacterial, antiparasitic, antioxidant, herbicidal, antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic activity.

Keywords::

• anticarcinogenic
• antifungal
• C. albicans
• glucosinolate
• isothiocyanates

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The DY Patil Education Society (Deemed to be University) Kolhapur provided project funding. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

The DY Patil Education Society (Deemed to be University) Kolhapur provided project funding. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.