Can eating broccoli and related vegetables help stave off infections?

A nationally recognized researcher who is set to speak at West Virginia University has shown that the diindolylmethane compound found in vegetables such as cabbage, kale and broccoli not only has cancer-fighting properties but may also help boost the immune system.

Leonard Bjeldanes, professor of nutritional sciences and toxicology at the University of California, Berkeley, will present a seminar on the immunity enhancing effects of dietary indoles from Brassica plants at 9 a.m. Friday (Nov. 30) in Room G29 of the Agricultural Sciences Building.

Cancer is a research area of great interest given that over 10 million cases occur each year,said Janet Tou, assistant professor of human nutrition and foods in the Davis College of Agriculture, Forestry and Consumer Sciences.This is a rare and valuable opportunity for members of the WVU community to learn from one of the worlds leading authorities on the role of nutrition in the prevention and treatment of the disease.

Bjeldanes currently chairs the UC Berkeley Graduate Group in Molecular Toxicology and served as chair of the Department of Nutritional Sciences and Toxicology from 1997-2005.

A question-and-answer session will follow the presentation. Bjeldanes will also be available for an informal meeting with interested faculty and staff to discuss research opportunities.

For more information, contact Tou at jctou@mail.wvu.edu or 304-293-2231 ext. 4437.