But an unwanted clot in your brain is called a stroke, and a stroke can kill you. Similarly, a clot in your heart can cause the big pump to stop beating. That's why scientists are so interested in stuff that prevents clotting. As with garlic, the chemical is released through a reaction between two chemicals that were once separated in the onion. But instead of looking at antibiotic properties, as David Mirelman of Israel is doing, Goldman is examining how the chemical affects the aggregation of platelets.
Platelets are tiny particles in the blood that form a mesh in an early stage of blood clotting.
The next step is to see if thiosulfonate works as well in animals as in plastic, when UW-Madison cardiologist John Folts drips the onion compounds into dogs stomachs. It's unclear where the work is leading. The thiosulfonates could become the basis for a medicine that slows clotting. Alternatively, it could lead to renewed interest in the health benefits of eating raw onions. But all that remains in the future, Goldman says.