Antigenotoxic Potential of Some Dietary Non-phenolic Phytochemicals

In recent years there has been a dramatic increase in human exposure to various genotoxic agents, such as ultraviolet light, ionizing radiation, or air, water and food pollutants. Continuous impaired genomic stability is known to cause the mutations that are actively involved in many pathological processes including cancer. A wide array of phytochemicals have been reported to exert genoprotective effects that are mainly related to their antioxidant potential. This chapter discusses the antigenotoxic properties of some nonphenolic phytochemicals, such as organosulfur compounds, terpenoids, and polysaccharides. It does so in terms of study type, mechanisms of activity, structure–activity relationships, and their clinical significance.