The Science · Enzyme

Myrosinase

A plant enzyme stored separately from glucoraphanin. Chopping or chewing brings the two together, producing sulforaphane.

EMG crops connected to this

Human research

Human interventionBioavailability

Preparations with the plant's own myrosinase delivered sulforaphane 3 to 4 times more effectively than glucoraphanin without the enzyme.

Population
Healthy volunteers
Measured
Sulforaphane conversion and excretion

Keep in mind: Very small volunteer group. Measured absorption, not a health outcome.

Fahey JW et al. · PLOS ONE, 2015 · View study

Human randomized trialBioavailability

Adding 1 g of powdered brown mustard to 200 g of cooked broccoli made sulforaphane more than four times as bioavailable as cooked broccoli alone.

Population
Adults
Participants
12
Amount studied
200 g cooked broccoli + 1 g brown mustard powder
Form
Cooked mature broccoli
Measured
Sulforaphane bioavailability

Keep in mind: Small study. Measured absorption, not a health outcome. Mature broccoli, not sprouts or microgreens.

Okunade O et al. · Molecular Nutrition & Food Research, 2018 · View study

Laboratory & mechanistic research

Lab, cell and animal findings explain how something behaves; they do not show the same result in people.

Lab analysis

Boiling broccoli stopped sulforaphane formation; adding powdered mustard seed afterward restarted it.

Form
Cooked mature broccoli

Keep in mind: Lab measurement on cooked mature broccoli, not sprouts or microgreens.

Ghawi SK, Methven L, Niranjan K · Food Chemistry, 2013 · View study

Lab analysis

Warming broccoli florets and sprouts to about 60 °C before crushing increased sulforaphane and reduced sulforaphane nitrile. At 70 °C and above, formation dropped in florets but not in sprouts.

Form
Broccoli florets and sprouts

Keep in mind: Measured in plant extracts in the lab, not in people.

Matusheski NV, Juvik JA, Jeffery EH · Phytochemistry, 2004 · View study

Preparation notes

Heat-sensitive. Mustard seed myrosinase held up to heat better than broccoli's in lab testing (Ghawi et al., Food Chemistry, 2013).

Sources: peer-reviewed research and NIH/USDA reference data, labeled by study type. EMG foods are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.