Allicin
Allicin is a powerful antibacterial and anti-fungal compound obtained from garlic. Allicin is also the chemical constituent primarily responsible for the hot, burning flavor of fresh garlic.
Allicin is not present in garlic in its natural state. When garlic is chopped or otherwise damaged, the enzyme alliinase acts on the chemical alliin converting it into allicin.[1] Alliin is an amino acid that does not build proteins.
Allicin is not a very stable compound. It degrades slowly upon standing and is rapidly destroyed by cooking. Allicin can be used for some medicinal purposes: it helps fighting arteriosclerosis, it has the ability to dissolve fats and it can also be used as an antioxidant to some extent.[2][3]
See also
- Allyl isothiocyanate, the active piquant chemical in mustard, radishes, horseradish and wasabi
- Capsaicin, the active piquant chemical in chile peppers
- Piperine, the active piquant chemical in black pepper
- Syn-propanethial-S-oxide, the chemical found in onions
References
- ↑ Eric Block (1985). “The chemistry of garlic and onions”. Scientific American. 252 (March): 114–119.
- ↑ Lindsey J. Macpherson, Bernhard H. Geierstanger, Veena Viswanath, Michael Bandell, Samer R. Eid, SunWook Hwang, and Ardem Patapoutian (2005). “The pungency of garlic: Activation of TRPA1 and TRPV1 in response to allicin“. Current Biology. 15 (May 24): 929–934. External link in
|title=(help) - ↑ Bautista DM, Movahed P, Hinman A, Axelsson HE, Sterner O, Hogestatt ED, Julius D, Jordt SE and Zygmunt PM (2005). “Pungent products from garlic activate the sensory ion channel TRPA1”. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 102 (34): 12248–52.
External links
- Chemistry of allicin
- Investigation of allicin use against superbugs, MRSA & VRE
- Antimicrobial properties of allicin from garlic
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