Eating your greens is now even better for you SUPER-BROCCOLI that packs an extra punch against cancer has been bred from ordinary broccoli and a scrawny wild Sicilian relative. Compared with regular broccoli, it contains 10 times as much sulphoraphane, a substance that helps to neutralise cancer-causing substances in the gut. "The super-broccoli looks and tastes the same as ordinary broccoli," says Gary Williamson, head of the team at the Institute of Food Research in Norwich that developed the souped-up version. Sulphoraphane is found in all brassicas, including sprouts and cauliflower. But broccoli has the highest concentrations. When sulphoraphane is released in the gut by broccoli, it steps up production of glutathione transferases--powerful enzymes that destroy cancer-causing substances in food, such as those found in heavily barbecued meat. Williamson, who described the super-broccoli earlier this month at an Institute of Food Research seminar in London, expects that people who eat it will produce even higher concentrations of glutathione transferases. Trials are due to begin soon in human volunteers, who will eat either super-broccoli or ordinary broccoli. Williamson wants to see if the superbroccoli boosts concentrations of glutathione transferases in gut and blood samples compared with ordinary broccoli. He also hopes to show the super-broccoli is better at protecting the DNA in cells from the ravages of time. The super-broccoli, originally bred at the nearby John Innes Centre, is being developed with two commercial partners. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news_224028.html