1 research outputs found
Inhibition of Platelet Activation by Lachrymatory Factor Synthase (LFS)-Silenced (Tearless) Onion Juice
Onion and garlic are renowned for
their roles as functional foods.
The health benefits of garlic are attributed to di-2-propenyl thiosulfinate
(allicin), a sulfur compound found in disrupted garlic but not found
in disrupted onion. Recently, onions have been grown with repressed
lachrymatory factor synthase (LFS) activity, which causes these onions
to produce increased amounts of di-1-propenyl thiosulfinate, an isomer
of allicin. This investigation into the key health attributes of LFS-silenced
(tearless) onions demonstrates that they have some attributes more
similar to garlic and that this is likely due to the production of
novel thiosulfinate or metabolites. The key finding was that collagen-induced
in vitro platelet aggregation was significantly reduced by tearless
onion extract over normal onion extract. Thiosulfinate or derived
compounds were shown not to be responsible for the observed changes
in the inflammatory response of AGS (stomach adenocarcinoma) cells
to tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) when pretreated with model
onion juices. A preliminary rat feeding trial indicated that the tearless
onions may also play a key role in reducing weight gain