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Turnip (Brassica Rapus L.): a natural health tonic

Nabo (Brassica Rapus L.): um tônico natural para a saúde

Abstract

In addition to basic nutrition, plant-based foods provide substantial amounts of bioactive compounds which deliver desirable health benefits. During the last decade, secondary metabolites, also known as phytochemicals, obtained from plants, have aroused special attention by researchers. Amongst such plants, the turnip contains a few valuable components which not only endorse health benefits but also provide healing properties. Various bioactive components, for example peroxidase, kaempferol, phenolic compounds, sulforaphane, organic acids, vitamin K, glucosinolates etc are highlighted in this manuscript. Likewise, numerous minerals, such as copper, manganese and calcium, and organic acids, such as sinapic and ferulic acids and their derivatives, found in different amounts in fresh greens and turnip roots, are also discussed briefly. The current paper is focused on the phenolic compounds, which act as beneficial compounds for human health and can be isolated from plant foods, especially turnip. Due to the presence of bioactive constituents, turnip imparts a positive role with respect to the hepatic injury caused by diabetes, high antioxidant activity and a good hepatoprotective role. The impact of environmental conditions and processing mechanisms on the phenolic compound composition of Brassica vegetables, with special reference to turnip, was also briefly discussed.

Keywords:
Turnip; Phytochemicals; Antioxidant; Vegetable; Health promoting; Therapy

Resumo

Além de nutrição básica, os alimentos baseados em plantas fornecem quantias substanciais de compostos bioativos que fornecem benefícios de saúde desejáveis. Durante a última década, metabólitos secundários, também conhecidos como fitoquímicos, obtidos de plantas, têm chamado muito a atenção dos pesquisadores. Entre estas plantas, o nabo contém alguns componentes valiosos que não apenas endossam os benefícios à saúde, mas também fornecem propriedades de cura. Uma variedade de componentes bioativos − por exemplo, peroxidase, kaempferol, compostos fenólicos, sulforafano, ácidos orgânicos, vitamina K, glicosinolatos etc. − são ressaltados neste manuscrito. Da mesma forma, numerosos minerais, como cobre, manganês e cálcio, e ácidos orgânicos, tais como os ácidos sinápico e ferúlico e seus derivados, presentes em quantias diferentes em folhas verdes frescas e raízes de nabo, são também discutidos brevemente. Este artigo foca nos compostos fenólicos, que agem como compostos benéficos à saúde humana e podem ser isolados de plantas comestíveis, especialmente de nabo. Devido à presença de constituintes bioativos, o nabo tem um papel positivo com respeito às injurias hepáticas causadas por diabetes, alta atividade antioxidante e um bom papel como protetor hepático. Os impactos das condições ambientais e dos mecanismos de processamento na composição dos compostos fenólicos de legumes Brassica, com referência especial ao nabo, foram também brevemente discutidos.

Palavras-chave:
Nabo; Fitoquímicos; Antioxidante; Legumes; Promotor de saúde; Terapia

1 Introduction

In the present millennium, plant-based functional foods have received substantial attention due to their potential nutritional profile, presumed safety and therapeutic effects. Due to these functional foods, plants provide numerous opportunities for cancer therapy. A wide range of horticultural crops are included in the Brassicaceae family, and some are extensively used in the diet due to their economic significance throughout the world. Various common vegetables are included in the genus Brassica, such as Bassical Rapa L. (turnip) also known as Shaljam in Pakistan (Mourato et al., 2015Mourato, M. P., Moreira, I. N., Leitão, I., Pinto, F. R., Sales, J. R., & Martins, L. L. (2015). Effect of heavy metals in plants of the genus Brassica. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 16(8), 17975-17998. PMid:26247945. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijms160817975
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijms160817975...
). Since prehistoric times, the turnip has been used for human consumption and is the oldest cultivated vegetable (Kaveh & Chayjan, 2017Kaveh, M., & Chayjan, R. A. (2017). Modeling thin‐layer drying of turnip slices under semi‐industrial continuous band dryer. Journal of Food Processing and Preservation, 41(2), e12778. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jfpp.12778
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jfpp.12778...
). This specie is particularly famous in Europe and grows in temperate climates.

Across Eastern America, Asia and European regions, the turnip is considered as a famous nutritious root vegetable, and in ancient Roman and Greek times, it was cultivated as a staple food (Lo Scalzo et al., 2008Lo Scalzo, R., Genna, A., Branca, F., Chedin, M., & Chassaigne, H. (2008). Anthocyanin composition of cauliflower (Brassica oleracea L. var. botrytis) and cabbage (B. oleracea L. var. capitata) and its stability in relation to thermal treatments. Food Chemistry, 107(1), 136-144. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2007.07.072
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.200...
). Baby turnips, also known as young turnips, are eaten raw in salads. Mature turnips have a stronger taste and their texture becomes firmer and woody as compared to baby turnips, which have a sweeter taste and delicate texture.

There are various varieties of turnips, of which Bavarian turnips are considered the best variety in terms of yield. The leaves of a few B. rapa (Bavarian turnip) varieties are also used, and are known as Chinese cabbage. Both the roots and leaves have a pungent flavour and the edible portions of the turnip are used as an ingredient in stews and soups. Similarly, turnip tops and turnip greens have been used as vegetable products in some parts of the globe. A bitter taste, particular sulphurous aroma and pungent flavour are the characteristics of turnips. Likewise, numerous secondary metabolites such as phenolic acid in turnip tops and glucosinolates in turnip greens have been significantly correlating with the flavour and texture. The amount and pattern of the glucosinolates and volatiles in Brassica plants vary according to the plant species, cultivar and vegetable part, as well as to the developmental stage of the plant (Kessler & Baldwin, 2002Kessler, A., & Baldwin, I. T. (2002). Plant responses to insect herbivory: The emerging molecular analysis. Annual Review of Plant Biology, 53(1), 299-328. PMid:12221978. http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev.arplant.53.100301.135207
http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev.arplan...
). When the glucosinolates come into contact with myrosinases in the presence of water (during processing, cutting, tissue chewing or when injured), they give rise to breakdown products (isothiocyanates, thiocyanates, nitriles, epithionitriles and oxazolidines). Both glucosinolates and its derivatives are known to have a wide range of important biological activities (Padilla et al., 2007Padilla, G., Cartea, M. E., Velasco, P., De Haro, A., & Ordás, A. (2007). Variation of glucosinolates in vegetable crops of Brassica rapa. Phytochemistry, 68(4), 536-545. PMid:17187832. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.phytochem.2006.11.017
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.phytochem.20...
). Some have been shown to be beneficial (such as the chemoprotective effect against certain cancers in humans), while others are detrimental for human and animal consumption (potentially goitrogenic) (Padilla et al., 2007Padilla, G., Cartea, M. E., Velasco, P., De Haro, A., & Ordás, A. (2007). Variation of glucosinolates in vegetable crops of Brassica rapa. Phytochemistry, 68(4), 536-545. PMid:17187832. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.phytochem.2006.11.017
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.phytochem.20...
; Taveira et al., 2009Taveira, M., Fernandes, F., Pinho, P. G., Andrade, P. B., Pereira, J. A., & Valentão, P. (2009). Evolution of Brassica rapa var. rapa L. volatile composition by HS-SPME and GC/IT-MS. Microchemical Journal, 93(2), 140-146. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.microc.2009.05.011
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.microc.2009....
). The persistent bitter taste and aftertaste of turnips are due to the progoitrin and gluconapin present in both turnip greens and tops (Francisco et al., 2011aFrancisco, M., Cartea, M. E., Soengas, P., & Velasco, P. (2011a). Effect of genotype and environmental conditions on health-promoting compounds in brassica rapa. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 59(6), 2421-2431. PMid:21341668. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jf103492r
http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jf103492r...
).

2 Morphological attributes

Turnip grow well in territories in cold environments and may be stored for months after harvest. The leaves are usually light green, thin and sparsely downy. The turnip plant has a white-fleshed edible part, and the large sphered root develops underneath the flowering stems and leaf petioles. The flowers form a bunch at the top of the raceme and are usually raised above the terminal buds. Bolting of turnip plants occurs in late winter, followed by the formation of flower buds, which are also consumed before opening, while still green. Turnip greens have an intense aroma, the colour of the leaves and a salty taste, while the tops are unique for their colour, moistness, fibrosity in the mouth and bitter taste (Lim, 2015Lim, T. K. (2015). Edible medicinal and non-medicinal plants: Modified stems, roots, bulbs (Vol. 9). Dordrech: Springer.). Two turnip varieties are grown, small, tender ones and large sized ones, the small ones being grown for human consumption and the larger ones for the purpose of livestock feed.

3 Nutritional profile

The nutritional assessment of turnips shows various valuable moieties. 100 grams of turnip roots provides 2-grams dietary fibre, 0.1 gram fat, 6.7 grams carbohydrate, 0.6 gram protein, 1.1 milligrams riboflavin, 0.4 milligram thiamine, 0.08 milligram Vit. B6, 16 milligrams Vit. C, 20 micrograms folate, 50 milligrams calcium, phosphorous and iron, 8 milligrams magnesium, 280 milligrams potassium and 18 milligrams sodium (Lo Scalzo et al., 2008Lo Scalzo, R., Genna, A., Branca, F., Chedin, M., & Chassaigne, H. (2008). Anthocyanin composition of cauliflower (Brassica oleracea L. var. botrytis) and cabbage (B. oleracea L. var. capitata) and its stability in relation to thermal treatments. Food Chemistry, 107(1), 136-144. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2007.07.072
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.200...
). Thus, turnip root is low calorie (28 calories/100 gram) although it is a good storehouse of minerals, vitamins, dietary fibre and antioxidants.

Many essential nutrients are present in the turnip greens which are not present in the turnip roots. Turnip greens are not only abundant in antioxidants such as carotenoids, xanthins, lutein, vitamin A and vitamin C, but are also an excellent source of vitamin K. Cartea et al. (2010)Cartea, M. E., Francisco, M., Soengas, P., & Velasco, P. (2010). Phenolic compounds in Brassica vegetables. Molecules, 16(1), 251-280. PMid:21193847. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/molecules16010251
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/molecules16010...
reported that the vitamin B complex i.e. riboflavin; pantothenic acid and thiamine are abundantly present in the top greens of the turnip. Likewise, calcium, iron, copper and manganese are important mineral sources present in the fresh turnip greens.

4 Phenolic compounds & organic acids

The literature suggests that a diet rich in fruits and vegetables can lessen the appearance of various ailments such as diabetes, cancer, CVD and other diseases (Christensen, 2009Christensen, L. P. (2009). Galactolipids as potential health promoting compounds in vegetable foods. Recent Patets on Food, Nutrition & Agriculture, 1(1), 50-58. PMid:20653526. http://dx.doi.org/10.2174/2212798410901010050
http://dx.doi.org/10.2174/22127984109010...
). Compounds associated with the health endorsing effects of vegetables are the organosulphur compounds, glucosinolates and other secondary metabolites i.e. carotenoids, phytosterols, (Ferreres et al., 2005Ferreres, F., Valentão, P., Llorach, R., Pinheiro, C., Cardoso, U., Pereira, J. A., Sousa, C., Seabra, R. M., & Andrade, P. B. (2005). Phenolic compounds in external leaves of tronchuda cabbage (Brassica oleracea L. var. costata DC). Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 53(8), 2901-2907. PMid:15826037. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jf040441s
http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jf040441s...
). Witman (2011)Witman, G. (2011). Role of chromatography in the purification of nutraceuticals: New FDA guidelines mandate highlight importance of this essential analytical technique. Norcross: Dynamic Adsorbents. reported that the focus has recently been diverted towards other potential health endorsing compounds found in different natural vegetable products, partly explaining the health effects of, as an example, carrots and other related vegetables, which contain polyacetylenes of the falcarinol-type, which show numerous biological activities including anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer effects.

A diet containing vegetables is the chief source of the flavonoid compounds (Haytowitz et al., 2002Haytowitz, D. B., Eldridge, A. L., Bhagwat, S., Gebhardt, S. E., Holden, J. M., Beecher, G. R., Peterson, J., & Dwyer, J. (2002). Flavonoid content of vegetables. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, 15, 339-348.). Heimler et al. (2013)Heimler, D., Vignolini, P., Dini, M. G., Vincieri, F. F., & Romani, A. (2013). Antiradical activity and polyphenol composition of local Brassicaceae edible varieties. Food Chemistry, 99(3), 464-469. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2005.07.057
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.200...
analysed various flavonoid and hydroxycinnamic derivatives present in aqueous turnip extracts by HPLC, as shown in Table 1. Flavonoids may reduce the potential risk of cardiovascular, cancer and inflammatory ailments in humans. Sinapic, ferulic and caffeic acids, kaempferol 3-O-sophoroside-7-O-sophoroside, kaempferol 3,7-O-diglucoside, isorhamnetin 3,7-O-diglucoside, kaempferol 3-O-(feruloyl/caffeoyl)-sophoroside-7-O-glucoside, kaempferol 3-O-sophoroside, 1,20-disinapoyl-2-feruloyl gentiobiose, kaempferol 3-O-sophoro-side-7-O-glucoside, 3-p-coumaroylquinic, 1,2-disin-apoylgentiobiose, isorhamnetin 3-O-glucoside and kaempferol 3-O-glucoside are the phenolic compounds found in the stem, leaves and flower buds of the turnip. Likewise, Sinapic and ferulic acids and their by-products were present in vestigial amounts in the analysis of turnip roots. Isorhamnetin 3-O-glucoside, 1,20-disinapoyl-2-feruloyl gentiobiose, kaempferol 3,7-O-diglucoside, kaempferol 3-O-sophoroside, 1,2-disinapoylgentiobiose, kaempferol 3-O-glucoside and isorhamnetin 3,7-O-diglucoside were the compounds in common when compared with the results obtained for the B. rapa variety (Kumar & Andy, 2012Kumar, S., & Andy, A. (2012). Health promoting bioactive phytochemicals from Brassica. International Food Research Journal, 19(1), 141-152.; Romani et al., 2006aRomani, A., Pinelli, P., Galardi, C., Corti, G., Agnelli, A., Vincieri, F. F., & Heimler, D. (2006a). Flavonoids in leaves of black cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. acephala DC. subvar. viridis cv. serotina) grown on different soils and at different elevations. Italian Journal of Food Science, 15, 197-205.). These phenolic moieties were found in various turnip extracts, with 10 to 19g/kg and 8 to 13g/kg on a dry weight basis in the flower buds and leaves and stems, respectively (Ludwig et al., 2011Ludwig, R., Thomas, G., Harald, A., & Emmerling-Skala, A. (2011). The ‘Bavarian Turnip’: A rediscovered local vegetable variety of Brassica rapa L. em. Metzg. var. rapa. Biomedical and Life Sciences, 52, 111-113.). The leaves and stems exhibited similar profiles, with kaempferol 3-O-sophoroside-7-O- glucoside, kaempferol 3-O-(feruloyl/caffeoyl)-sophoroside-7-O-glucoside, isorhamnetin 3,7-O- diglucoside and isorhamnetin 3-O-glucoside present in larger amounts, whereas 3-p- coumaroylquinic acid, 1,2-disin-apoylgentiobiose and 1,20-disinapoyl-2-feruloylgentiobiose were present in minor quantities (Rafatullah et al., 2016Rafatullah, S., Al-Yahya, M., Mossa, J., Galal, A., & El-Tahir, K. (2016). Preliminary phytochemical and hepatoprotective studies on Turnip Brassica rapa L. International Journal of Pharmacology, 2, 670-673.). Likewise, sinapic acid and kaempferol 3-O-glucoside were present in larger amounts, whereas caffeic acid and kaempferol 3-O-sophoroside-7-O-sophoroside were found in smaller amounts in the turnip flower buds. However, turnip flower buds showed significantly lower amounts of the pair kaempferol 3-O-sophoroside-7-O-sophoroside plus caffeic acid, and presented significantly larger amounts of sinapic acid, 1,20-disin-apoyl-2- feruloylgentiobiose and kaempferol 3-O-glucoside than the leaves and stems (Christensen, 2009Christensen, L. P. (2009). Galactolipids as potential health promoting compounds in vegetable foods. Recent Patets on Food, Nutrition & Agriculture, 1(1), 50-58. PMid:20653526. http://dx.doi.org/10.2174/2212798410901010050
http://dx.doi.org/10.2174/22127984109010...
). Similarly, despite quantitative differences noticed in the organic acid contents of different extracts from the same plant material, ketoglutaric, shikimic, citric, aconitic, malic and fumaric acids were found in almost all the turnip portions (Francisco et al., 2011bFrancisco, M., Velasco, P., Romero, A., Vázquez, L., & Cartea, M. E. (2011b). Sensory quality of turnip greens and turnip tops grown in northwestern Spain. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 77, 110-121.). However, the leaves, stems and flower buds contained significantly higher contents of organic acids (36 to 51 g/kg) than the roots (Fernandes et al., 2007Fernandes, F., Valentão, P., Sousa, C., Pereira, J., Seabra, R., & Andrade, P. (2007). Chemical and antioxidative assessment of dietary turnip (Brassica rapa var. rapa L.). Food Chemistry, 105(3), 1003-1010. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2007.04.063
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.200...
). A smaller amount of aconitic acid was found in the stem, roots and leaves, and shikimic acid was a minor compound in the flower buds (Daryoush et al., 2011Daryoush, M., Bahram, A. T., Yousef, D., & Mehrdad, N. (2011). Protective effect of turnip root (Brassica Rapa. L) ethanolic extract on early hepatic injury in alloxanized diabetic rats. Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, 5, 748-756.). Similarly, ketoglutaric and citric acid showed higher concentrations in the flower buds, while malic acid was a major acid in all the edible portions of the turnip. Turnip root showed higher concentrations of malic acid (81%), followed by the leaves and stems (65%) and the flower buds (44%). Aconitic acid was higher in the flower buds (14%) and relatively lower in the roots (2%). It has been reported in the literature that shikimic, citric, aconitic, malic and fumaric acids show positive activity against gram negative bacteria (Sousa et al., 2008Sousa, C., Taveira, M., Valentão, P., Fernandes, F., Pereira, J. A., Estevinho, L., Bento, A., Ferreres, F., Seabra, R. M., & Andrade, P. B. (2008). Inflorescences of Brassicacea species as source of bioactive compounds: A comparative study. Food Chemistry, 110(4), 953-961. PMid:26047285. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2008.02.087
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.200...
). On the other hand, shikimic acid is generally used as the starting material for the industrial synthesis of the antiviral drug Oseltamivir (this drug is effective against the H5N1 influenza virus and is administered to treat and prevent all known strains of the influenza virus) (Bradley, 2005Bradley, D. (2005). Star role for bacteria in controlling flu pandemic? Nature Reviews. Drug Discovery, 4(12), 945-946. PMid:16370070. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nrd1917
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nrd1917...
; Bochkov et al., 2012Bochkov, D. V., Sysolyatin, S. V., Kalashnikov, A. I., & Surmacheva, I. A. (2012). Shikimic acid: Review of its analytical, isolation, and purification techniques from plant and microbial sources. Journal of Chemical Biology, 5(1), 5-17. PMid:22826715. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12154-011-0064-8
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12154-011-006...
). In addition, a Chinese research team has synthesized a shikimic acid derivative, triacetylshikimic acid, which exhibits anticoagulant and antithrombotic activities (Huang et al., 2002Huang, F., Xiu, Q., Sun, J., & Hong, E. J. (2002). Anti-platelet and anti-thrombotic effects of triacetylshikimic acid in rats. Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology, 39(2), 262-270. PMid:11791012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/00005344-200202000-00013
http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/00005344-20020...
). In another study, citric acid showed antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects when administered orally at 1–2 g/kg in brain tissue. Similarly, citric acid also demonstrated a beneficial hepatic protective effect when administered in the same dose range (Abdel-Salam et al., 2014Abdel-Salam, O. M., Youness, E. R., Mohammed, N. A., Morsy, S. M. Y., Omara, E. A., & Sleem, A. A. (2014). Citric acid effects on brain and liver oxidative stress in lipopolysaccharide-treated mice. Journal of Medicinal Food, 17(5), 588-598. PMid:24433072. http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/jmf.2013.0065
http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/jmf.2013.0065...
).

Table 1
Turnip phenolic compounds.

5 Bioactive substances & pharmacological perspectives

The beta cystathionase present in turnip contributes to five different metabolic pathways listed as nitrogen, methionine, cysteine, selenoamino acid and sulphur metabolism (Milkowski et al., 2004Milkowski, C., Baumert, A., Schmidt, D., Nehlin, L., & Strack, D. (2004). Molecular regulation of sinapate ester metabolism in Brassica napus: Expression of genes, properties of the encoded proteins and correlation of enzyme activities with metabolite accumulation. The Plant Journal, 38(1), 80-92. PMid:15053762. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-313X.2004.02036.x
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-313X.20...
). The potential risk of cardiovascular diseases and cancer can be reduced by the dietary phytonutrients found in turnips. Agati & Tattini (2010)Agati, G., & Tattini, M. (2010). Multiple functional roles of flavonoids in photoprotection. The New Phytologist, 186(4), 786-793. PMid:20569414. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-8137.2010.03269.x
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-8137.20...
illustrated that research on the chemoprotection approach has focused on the biological activity of plant-based flavonoids, isoflavones, polyphenols, terpenes and glucosinolates. Batista et al. (2011)Batista, C., Barros, L., Carvalho, A. M. I., & Ferreira, C. F. R. (2011). Nutritional and nutraceutical potential of rape (Brassica napus L. var. napus) and “tronchuda” cabbage (Brassica oleraceae L. var. costata) inflorescences. Food and Chemical Toxicology, 49(6), 1208-1214. PMid:21376770. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fct.2011.02.023
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fct.2011.02....
suggest that the turnip phenolic compounds may act as a natural pesticide, helping to improve the resistance against different parasites and pathogens. The phenolic compound contents in the turnip can be affected by the degree of ripeness, cultivar and germination (Ayaz et al., 2008Ayaz, F. A., Hayirlioglu-Ayaz, S., Alpay-Karaoglu, S., Gruz, J., Valentova, K., Ulrichova, J., & Strnad, M. (2008). Phenolic acid contents of kale (Brassica oleraceae L. var. acephala DC.) extracts and their antioxidant and antibacterial activities. Food Chemistry, 107(1), 19-25. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2007.07.003
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.200...
). Moreover, Dergal et al. (2002)Dergal, J. M., Gold, J. L., Laxer, D. A., Lee, M. S. W., Binns, M. A., Lanctôt, K. L., Freedman, M., & Rochon, P. A. (2002). Potential interactions between herbal medicines and conventional drug therapies used by older adults attending a memory clinic. Drugs & Aging, 19(11), 879-886. PMid:12428996. http://dx.doi.org/10.2165/00002512-200219110-00005
http://dx.doi.org/10.2165/00002512-20021...
reported that tannins may affect iron bioavailability and protein absorption by forming insoluble complexes with the protein as well as with minerals (Gemede & Ratta, 2014Gemede, H. F., & Ratta, N. (2014). Antinutritional factors in plant foods: Potential health benefits and adverse effects. International Journal of Nutrition and Food Sciences, 3(4), 284-289. http://dx.doi.org/10.11648/j.ijnfs.20140304.18
http://dx.doi.org/10.11648/j.ijnfs.20140...
; Delimont et al., 2017Delimont, N. M., Haub, M. D., & Lindshield, B. L. (2017). The impact of tannin consumption on iron bioavailability and status: A narrative review. Current Developments in Nutrition, 1(2), 1-12. PMid:29955693. http://dx.doi.org/10.3945/cdn.116.000042
http://dx.doi.org/10.3945/cdn.116.000042...
).

Functional and nutraceutical foods have become key issues in behavioural nutrition and diets (Batista et al., 2011Batista, C., Barros, L., Carvalho, A. M. I., & Ferreira, C. F. R. (2011). Nutritional and nutraceutical potential of rape (Brassica napus L. var. napus) and “tronchuda” cabbage (Brassica oleraceae L. var. costata) inflorescences. Food and Chemical Toxicology, 49(6), 1208-1214. PMid:21376770. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fct.2011.02.023
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fct.2011.02....
). Recently, the increase in the use of vegetables and fruits in the consumer diet has not only significantly improved consumer health, but also decreased the chances of chronic disorders. In addition to basic nutrition, foods obtained from plants provide substantial quantities of bioactive compounds, which help to maintain consumer health (Dillard & German, 2000Dillard, C. J., & German, J. B. (2000). Phytochemicals: Nutraceuticals and human health. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 80(12), 1744-1756. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/1097-0010(20000915)80:12<1744::AID-JSFA725>3.0.CO;2-W
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/1097-0010(2000...
). The edible portion of turnips i.e. stems, roots, leaves and flower buds, contain 14 different phenolic compounds. Isorhamnetin 3,7-O-diglucoside, kaempferol 3-O-sophoroside-7-O-glucoside, isorhamnetin 3-O-glucoside and kaempferol 3-O-(feruloyl/caffeoyl)-sophoroside-7-O-glucoside are the foremost phenolic compounds, whereas malic acid is the main organic acid found in larger amounts in the turnip. In addition to these, the turnip flower buds show significant antioxidant capacity. A minute quantity of oxalic acid (0.21 g per 100 g) is found in the top greens and roots of the turnip, which can cause oxalate stones in the urinary tract. Thus sufficient water intake is advised to sustain a normal urine output in subjects with a higher risk for kidney stones (Lin & Harnly, 2010Lin, L. Z., & Harnly, J. M. (2010). Phenolic component profiles of mustard greens, yu choy, and 15 other Brassica vegetables. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 58(11), 6850-6857. PMid:20465307. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jf1004786
http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jf1004786...
). The bioactive non-nutritive compounds can also contribute to the organoleptic properties of the vegetables and fruits (Francisco et al., 2009Francisco, M., Moreno, D. A., Cartea, M. E., Ferreres, F., García-Viguera, C., & Velasco, P. (2009). Simultaneous identification of glucosinolates and phenolic compounds in a representative collection of vegetable Brassica rapa. Journal of Chromatography A, 1216(38), 6611-6619. PMid:19683241. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2009.07.055
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2009....
). Romani et al. (2006b)Romani, A., Vignolini, P., Isolani, L., Ieri, F., & Heimler, D. (2006b). HPLC-DAD/MS characterization of flavonoids and hydroxycinnamic derivatives in turnip tops (Brassica rapa L. Subsp. sylvestris L.). Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 54(4), 1342-1346. PMid:16478258. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jf052629x
http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jf052629x...
reported that the organic and phenolic acids of the brassica genus and their by-products have been widely investigated.

6 Therapeutic proteins in transgenic cultivars

Recently, researchers have shown more interest in the production and delivery of therapeutic proteins. From this perspective, both the alpha- and beta-interferons, which are therapeutic proteins formed under specific conditions i.e. fermentation, may be significantly important against various ailments such as cancer, heart attacks, hepatitis A and B, anaemia and diabetes (Auger et al., 2010Auger, B., Marnet, N., Gautier, V., Maia-Grondard, A., Leprince, F., Renard, M., Guyot, S., Nesi, N., & Routaboul, J. M. (2010). A detailed survey of seed coat flavonoids in developing seeds of Brassica napus L. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 58(10), 6246-6256. PMid:20429588. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jf903619v
http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jf903619v...
). These proteins are being produced by means of microbial fermentation in cell cultures in transgenic turnip roots and in some other products. Numerous therapeutic proteins are mostly produced by parenteral routes. In order to attain maximal efficacy with minimal risk, various novel methodologies have been explored and designed to obtain these therapeutic proteins (Muheem et al., 2016Muheem, A., Shakeel, F., Jahangir, M. A., Anwar, M., Mallick, N., Jain, G. K., Warsi, M. H., & Ahmad, F. J. (2016). A review on the strategies for oral delivery of proteins and peptides and their clinical perspectives. Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal, 24(4), 413-428. PMid:27330372. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jsps.2014.06.004
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jsps.2014.06...
).

7 Hepatoprotective role

In recent times, the trend for taking herbal medicines has been increasing day by day, with a decrease in the trend for conventional therapy (Rivera et al., 2013Rivera, J. O., Loya, A. M., & Ceballos, R. (2013). Use of herbal medicines and implications for conventional drug therapy medical sciences. Alternative & Integrative Medicine, 2(6), 1-6.; De-Smet, 2002De-Smet, P. A. (2002). Herbal remedies. The Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 347(25), 2046-2056. PMid:12490687.). This growing demand is due to the broad spectrum of health benefits offered by these herbal therapies against various disorders. In Arabia and Unan, the turnip is used as traditional medicine for various diseases such as constipation, chronic gastritis, cholecystolithiasis, liver diseases and cancer (Pithford, 2002Pithford, P. (2002). Healing with whole foods: Asian traditions and modern nutrition. Berkeley: North Atlantic Books.; Hartwell, 1971Hartwell, J. L. (1971). Plants used against cancer: A survey. Lloydia, 34(4), 386-425. PMid:5173435.). A study was carried out to probe the antihepatitic and antioxidative role of turnip in rats with CCl4 (carbon tetrachloride) induced liver damage (Bhinu et al., 2009Bhinu, V. S., Schafer, U. A., Li, R., Huang, J., & Hannoufa, A. (2009). Targeted modulation of sinapine biosynthesis pathway for seed quality improvement in Brassica napus. Transgenic Research, 18(1), 31-44. PMid:18612839. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11248-008-9194-3
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11248-008-919...
). Nonprotein-sulfhydryl activities were shown to decrease drastically in the CCl4 treated rats when compared with the normal group. Treatment with turnip juice restored the decrease in these activities produced by the CCl4, tending towards normalization with the highest dose (16 mL/kg) (Nair et al., 2000Nair, R. B., Joy 4th, R. W., Kurylo, E., Shi, X. H., Schnaider, J., Datla, R. S. S., Keller, W. A., & Selvaraj, G. (2000). Identification of a CYP84 family of cytochrome P450-dependent mono-oxygenase genes in Brassica napus and perturbation of their expression for engineering sinapine reduction in the seeds. Plant Physiology, 123(4), 1623-1634. PMid:10938378. http://dx.doi.org/10.1104/pp.123.4.1623
http://dx.doi.org/10.1104/pp.123.4.1623...
). Likewise, the aqueous extract of Brassica rapa chinensis (250, 500 mg/kg) decreased the oxidative stress induced by tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BHP) in rats. The treatment with the aqueous extract of Brassica rap chinensis significantly combatted the oxidative stress produced by t-BHP in the hepatic tissues, as evidenced by a marked improvement in the antioxidant status and suppressing lipid peroxide levels. The results obtained were dose dependent, with the 500 mg/kg bw dosage of Brassica rapa chinensis aqueous extract showing the greatest potential in curbing toxic effect of t-BHP (Kalava & Mayilsamy, 2014Kalava, S., & Mayilsamy, D. (2014). Aqueous extract of Brassica rapa chinensis ameliorates tert-butyl hydroperoxide induced oxitative stress in rats. International Journal of Current Pharmaceutical Research, 6(3), 58-61.; Al-Snafi, 2015Al-Snafi, A. E. (2015). The pharmacological importance of Brassica nigra and Brassica rapa grown in Iraq. Journal of Pharmaceutical Biology, 5(4), 240-253.). Some Brassica species, including turnip, were previously investigated for their anti-carcinogenic activity (Kristal, 2002Kristal, A. R. (2002). Brassica vegetables and prostate cancer risk: A review of the epidemiologic evidence. Pharmaceutical Biology, 40(1), 55-58. http://dx.doi.org/10.1076/phbi.40.7.55.9169
http://dx.doi.org/10.1076/phbi.40.7.55.9...
). Hence, Brassica vegetables are consumed for health improvement, which is related to their antioxidant activity (Plumb et al., 1996Plumb, G. W., Lambert, N., Chambers, S. J., Wanigatunga, S., Heaney, R. K., Plumb, J. A., Aruoma, O. I., Halliwell, B., Miller, N. J., & Williamson, G. (1996). Are whole extracts and purified glucosinolates from cruciferous vegetables antioxidants? Free Radical Research, 25(1), 75-86. PMid:8814445. http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/10715769609145657
http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/10715769609145...
), and the foremost antioxidants of turnips and related vegetables are probably the phenolic compounds, for example, flavonoids. Thus, these polyphenols scavenge the free radicals and break the propagation chain (the second defence line) or inhibit chain initiation (Shi et al., 2009Shi, H., Noguchi, N., & Niki, E. (2009). Natural antioxidants. In J. Pokorny, N. Yanishlieva & M. Gordon (Eds.), Antioxidants in food practical application (1st ed.). Cambridge: Woodhead Publishing.; Robards et al., 1999Robards, K., Prenzler, P. D., Tucker, G., Swatsitang, P., & Glover, W. (1999). Phenolic compounds and their role in oxidative processes in fruits. Food Chemistry, 66(4), 401-436. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0308-8146(99)00093-X
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0308-8146(99)...
).

8 Ethanolic extract against hepatic injury in diabetics

Nowadays, the turnip has gained even greater interest for its anti-diabetic effect, due to the finding of numerous bioactive compounds such as flavonoids, phenylpropanoid derivatives, indole alkaloids and sterol glucosides (Romani et al., 2006aRomani, A., Pinelli, P., Galardi, C., Corti, G., Agnelli, A., Vincieri, F. F., & Heimler, D. (2006a). Flavonoids in leaves of black cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. acephala DC. subvar. viridis cv. serotina) grown on different soils and at different elevations. Italian Journal of Food Science, 15, 197-205.). Different classes of flavonoids have positive effects on diabetic patients in different ways (Podsedek et al., 2006Podsedek, A., Sosnowska, D., Redzynia, M., & Anders, B. (2006). Antioxidant capacity and content of Brassica oleracea dietary antioxidants. International Journal of Food Science & Technology, 41(s1), 49-58. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2621.2006.01260.x
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2621.20...
). For instance, isorhamnetin plays a vital role in inhibiting the activity of aldose reductase, which is directly related to complications in diabetics. Likewise, kaempferol has an important anti-diabetic role by increasing glucose absorption in the rat muscles and lowering the glycemic level (Rajesh & Latha, 2014Rajesh, M. G., & Latha, M. S. (2014). Protective activity of Glycyrrhiza glabra Linn. on carbon tetrachloride induced peroxidative damage. International Journal of Pharmacology, 305, 284-287.). Moreover, quercetin lowers the blood sugar level and boosts the plasma insulin level in diabetic rats due to streptozotocin (Srinivasan et al., 2018Srinivasan, P., Vijayakumar, S., Kothandaraman, S., & Palani, M. (2018). Anti-diabetic activity of quercetin extracted from Phyllanthus emblica L. fruit: in silico and in vivo approaches. Journal of Pharmaceutical Analysis, 8(2), 109-118. PMid:29736297. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jpha.2017.10.005
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jpha.2017.10...
). A similar study explored the finding that the ethanolic extract of turnip roots had an antidiabetic effect in diabetes mellitus type 2, by increasing glucose and fat metabolism (Sen et al., 1993Sen, T., Basu, A., Ray, R. N., & Nag Chaudhuri, A. K. (1993). Hepatoprotective effects of Pluchea indica (Lees) extract in experimental acute liver damage in rodents. Phytotherapy Research, 7(5), 352-355. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ptr.2650070506
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ptr.2650070506...
). The antioxidant potential of turnip is attributed to the frequently existing flavonoids and hydroxycinnamic acid derivatives (Syed et al., 2004Syed, M. M., Akhtar, S., Khan, A. A., & Hussain, Q. (2004). An economical, simole and high yield procedure for the immobilixation/stabilization of peroxidases from turnip roots. Journal of Scientific and Industrial Research, 63, 540-547.). Likewise, the ethanolic extract of turnip roots exhibits a protective effect against the initial hepatic injuries produced in alloxan-induced diabetic rats. It has also been reported in the literature that the ethanolic extract of turnip lowered the serum biomarker levels of hepatic injury (Nouairi et al., 2008Nouairi, I., Ben Ammar, W., Ben Youssef, N., Ben Miled, D. D., Ghorbal, M. H., & Zarrouk, M. (2008). Antioxidant defense system in leaves of Indian mustard (Brassica juncea) and rape (Brassica napus) under cadmium stress. Acta Physiologiae Plantarum, 31(2), 237-247. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11738-008-0224-9
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11738-008-022...
), and it would appear that the ethanolic extract has a protective effect on the early diabetic hepatopathy in rats with experimentally induced diabetes (Daryoush et al., 2011Daryoush, M., Bahram, A. T., Yousef, D., & Mehrdad, N. (2011). Protective effect of turnip root (Brassica Rapa. L) ethanolic extract on early hepatic injury in alloxanized diabetic rats. Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, 5, 748-756.).

9 Effect of turnip juice on phenobarbital-induced sleeping time

It was reported in the literature that the administration of turnip juice significantly lowered the phenobarbital-induced sleeping time. In addition, it has been shown that the CCl4 induced depletion of hepatic Net Positive Suction Head (NPSH) is significantly prevented by the ingestion of fresh turnip juice. Furthermore, the inhibitory effect of the juice on the CCl4 induced prolongation of sleeping time, suggests that the juice constituents can reverse the damage exerted by CC14 on cytochrome P450, which is involved in the metabolism of phenobarbitone (Husken et al., 2005Husken, A., Baumert, A., Strack, D., Becker, H. C., Mollers, C., & Milkowski, C. (2005). Reduction of sinapate ester content in transgenic oilseed rape (Brassica napus) by dsRNAi-based suppression of BnSGT1 gene expression. Molecular Breeding, 16(2), 127-138. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11032-005-6825-8
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11032-005-682...
). It was concluded that turnip juice could inhibit CCl4 induced liver damage in rats, possibly through its antioxidant mode of action, which supports earlier findings on other Brassica species. These findings also substantiate the claims of herbal and Unani medicine practitioners who use turnip to treat liver ailments (Francisco et al., 2011bFrancisco, M., Velasco, P., Romero, A., Vázquez, L., & Cartea, M. E. (2011b). Sensory quality of turnip greens and turnip tops grown in northwestern Spain. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 77, 110-121.).

10 Conclusion

Turnip is an easily accessible and plenteous dietary source of biologically active compounds. However, due to the small quantities of phenolic moieties and antioxidant ability, the turnip root seems to be the least interesting edible part. It is known that this plant contains organic acids, lipids, amino acids (free and in proteins), free sugars and minerals which play an important role in sustaining the fruit and vegetable quality as well as in determining the nutritive value of the plant in the human diet. Furthermore, turnip also has various pharmaceutical aspects such as a positive role against hepatic injury in diabetics, a heptoprotective role etc. These beneficial properties have been partly attributed to biologically active compounds present in the turnip, which show considerable antioxidant activity.

  • Cite as: Javed, A., Ahmad, A., Nouman, M., Hameed, A., Tahir, A., & Shabbir, U. (2019). Turnip (Brassica RapusL.): a natural health tonic. Brazilian Journal of Food Technology, 22, e2018253. https://doi.org/10.1590/1981-6723.25318
  • Funding: None.

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Publication Dates

  • Publication in this collection
    24 Oct 2019
  • Date of issue
    2019

History

  • Received
    25 Sept 2018
  • Accepted
    27 Apr 2019
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