Anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial activities of the phytochemicals isolated from various parts of broccoli wastes

Broccoli is an excellent source of vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and nutraceuticals. Phytochemicals, also known as phytonutrients are chemical compounds that are present in fruits, vegetables, and other plants and can be broadly divided into carbohydrates, terpenoids, phenolics, lipids, alkaloids, and other nitrogen-containing compounds. Waste generation is a global problem and vegetable wastes that contain the same or more amount of phytonutrients as the vegetable itself are discarded on daily basis leading to additional waste biomass. The unused portion of broccoli is considered to be waste which includes the stalk and the leaves, rotten and scraped portions of the vegetable. Only the fragile stems closest to the florets are eaten, while the lignified bottom stem of the vegetable is discarded. Approximately 30% of vegetable losses occur at retail and consumer levels including post- harvest and processing. These wastes possess various nutrients and multiple bioactive compounds such as phytochemicals (phenolics, glycosylates, carotenoids, and flavonoids). Broccoli waste has an enormous amount of these nutrients and nutraceuticals which have a wider range of applications in food supplements, pharmaceuticals and cosmetic industries. The phytochemicals from the leaf and stalk were extracted using the maceration process, and the stalk extract had stronger antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity at a concentration of 500 g/ml. It also showed good anti-microbial activity at 300 μg/ml proving it to be a potential source of important bioactive compounds and also implying the presence of anti-aging and anti-acne activity.