# _Brassica oleraea_ Pevents HCl/Ethanol-Induced Gastric Damages in Mice
## 4 Discussion  
Dr. [PERSON] referred vitamin U as an uncharacterized gastroprotective factor in cabbage juice [12], and this factor has been denominated \(S\)-methylmethionine sulfonium chloride [29]. Although vitamin U is not classified as a real vitamin, deficiency of vita  
Figure 6: Effect of BOE on H/E-mediated inflammation in the gastric tissue. (**a**) Hydrogen peroxide and \(o\)-dianisidine dihydrochloride were used as substrates for detecting MPO activity in the gastric tissue. mRNA levels of NF-kB and pro-inflammatory enzymes (**b**) and (**c**) and protein levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (**d**) were determined by real-time PCR and ELISA, respectively. All numerical results are presented as mean \(\pm\) SD of ten mice (**_p_ \(<0.01\) between the vehicle and H/E groups; **_p_ \(<0.01\), **_p_ \(<0.05\) versus H/E-administered group). BOE, _B. oleraca_ var. _capitata_ L. extract; COX-2, cyclooxygenase-2; H/E, HCl/ethanol; IL, interleukin; iNOS, inducible nitric oxide synthase; MPO, myeloperoxidase; NF-kB, nuclear factor-kB; RA, ranitidine hydrochloride; TNF, tumor necrosis factor. Figure 7: Effect of BOE on H/E-mediated oxidative stress in the gastric tissue. (**a**) The level of malondialdehydedehyde in the gastric tissue was measured as a marker of lipid peroxidation. (**b**) Activities for catalase and superoxide dismutase were determined using hydrogen peroxide and nitroblue tetrazolium, respectively. All numerical results are presented as mean \(\pm\) SD of ten mice (**_p_ \(<0.01\) between the vehicle and H/E groups; **_p_ \(<0.01\), **_p_ \(<0.05\) versus H/E-administered group). BOE, _B. oleraca_ var. _capitata_ L. extract; H/E, HCl/ethanol; RA, ranitidine hydrochloride. min U is thought to induce gastric ulcers [26]. This heat-labile factor recovers mucosal integrity by enhancing secretion of mucin [26; 30], and sulfhydryl group after metabolic transformation is considered a pivotal chemical moiety for vitamin U-mediated gastroprotection [26]. In addition, it has been also reported that vitamin U can inhibit differentiation of pre-adipocytes by activating AMP-activated protein kinase [31]. Moreover, accumulated evidence has suggested that vitamin U reveals diverse beneficial effects, which include hypolipidemic, hepatoprotective, anti-inflammatory, and cytoprotective activities [32; 33; 34; 35]. Because plant species belonging to the _Brassicaceae_ family contain the highest amount of vitamin U [25], in the present study, vitamin U was quantified as a representative biomarker of BOE. Furthermore, quantifying vitamin U will help assess the quality of BOE in the process of developing BOE as a functional food. Although we reported that BOE contained 50.26 mg/g vitamin U, the concentration of vitamin U was too low to explain maximal gastroprotective effect of BOE. Of diverse phytochemicals found in cabbage, it has been reported that allyl isothiamate alleviates the erosion of gastric mucosa through growth inhibition of _H. pylori_[36]. In addition, heparin and sulforaphene inhibit the activity of _H. pylori_ urease [37]. Moreover, indol-3-carbinol alone or in combination with emeprazole shows profound protection to the gastric mucosa in aspirin-induced gastric ulcer [38]. Furthermore, several polyphenols such as quercetin, kaempfer, and apigenin, have also been reported to exhibit beneficial effects on gastric ulcer in experimental animals [39; 40; 41]. Thus, vitamin U as well as other phytochemicals in BOE may contribute collaboratively to prevent gastric ulcer caused by H/E. Further studies are warranted to identify other valuable biomarkers in BOE. Results from macroscopic/microscopic histopathological assessment indicated that BOE decreased hemorrhagic gross lesions and restored mucosal thickness in the peric ulcerative region after H/E treatment. Mucus secreted from mucous cells in the gastric pits is regarded as the first barrier to diminish pathogen penetration and to protect the tissue from ulcerogenic stimuli [42].