Nutritional genomics, also known as nutrigenomics, is a science studying the relationship between

human genome The human genome is a complete set of nucleic acid sequences for humans, encoded as DNA within the 23 chromosome pairs in cell nuclei and in a small DNA molecule found within individual mitochondria. These are usually treated separately as the ...

human nutrition Human nutrition deals with the provision of essential nutrients in food that are necessary to support human life and good health. Poor nutrition is a chronic problem often linked to poverty, food security, or a poor understanding of nutritiona ...

and health. People in the field work toward developing an understanding of how the whole body responds to a food via systems biology, as well as single gene/single food compound relationships. Nutritional genomics or Nutrigenomics is the relation between food and inherited genes, it was first expressed in 2001.

Introduction

The term "nutritional genomics" is an umbrella term including several subcategories, such as nutrigenetics, nutrigenomics, and nutritional epigenetics. Each of these subcategories explain some aspect of how genes react to nutrients and express specific phenotypes, like disease risk. There are several applications for nutritional genomics, for example how much nutritional intervention and therapy can successfully be used for disease prevention and treatment.

Background and preventive health

Nutritional science originally emerged as a field that studied individuals lacking certain nutrients and the subsequent effects, such as the disease

scurvy Scurvy is a disease resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Early symptoms of deficiency include weakness, feeling tired and sore arms and legs. Without treatment, decreased red blood cells, gum disease, changes to hair, and bleeding ...

which results from a lack of vitamin C. As other diseases closely related to diet (but not deficiency), such as obesity, became more prevalent, nutritional science expanded to cover these topics as well. Nutritional research typically focuses on preventative measure, trying to identify what nutrients or foods will raise or lower risks of diseases and damage to the human body. For example,

Prader–Willi syndrome Prader–Willi syndrome (PWS) is a genetic disorder caused by a loss of function of specific genes on chromosome 15. In newborns, symptoms include weak muscles, poor feeding, and slow development. Beginning in childhood, those affected become ...

, a disease whose most distinguishing factor is insatiable appetite, has been specifically linked to an epigenetic pattern in which the paternal copy in the chromosomal region is erroneously deleted, and the maternal loci is inactivated by over methylation. Yet, although certain disorders may be linked to certain

single-nucleotide polymorphism In genetics, a single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP ; plural SNPs ) is a germline substitution of a single nucleotide at a specific position in the genome. Although certain definitions require the substitution to be present in a sufficiently lar ...

s (SNPs) or other localized patterns, variation within a population may yield many more polymorphisms.Bisen, Prakash A.; Debnath, Mousumi; Prasad, Godavarthi B.K.S. (2010). ''Molecular Dianostics: Promises and Possibilities''. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 26..

Mediterranean Diet

The Mediterranean Diet refers to naturally occurring foods native to Greece, Italy and Spain before globalization of food products in the 20th century. The diet includes relatively high consumption of fruit, vegetables, olive oil, legumes, whole grains and moderate amounts of red wine. Foods with increased fat and dairy are minimally consumed. Countless nutritional genomics studies have pointed towards the Mediterranean Diet to be most nutritionally beneficial. It has been positively linked towards decreased mortality by providing protective agents against metabolic diseases, cardiovascular disease and several types of cancer. These benefits are due to the abundance of dietary bioactive compounds present in Mediterranean staples. Examples of this include ''Curcuma longa'' (turmeric), Resveratrol, Lycopene, Capsaicin, Quercetin, and polyphenols in Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Each of these bioactive compounds, along with several others, interact with the body's cellular and molecular function, gene expression and epigenome to prevent angiogenesis and the development of neurodegenerative disease.

Applications

The applications of nutritional genomics are multiple. With personalized assessment some disorders (

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...

, metabolic syndrome) can be identified. Nutrigenomics can help with personalized health and nutrition intake by assessing individuals and make specific nutritional requirements. The focus is in the prevention and the correction of specific genetic disorders. Examples of genetic related disorders that improve with nutritional correction are obesity,

coronary heart disease Coronary artery disease (CAD), also called coronary heart disease (CHD), ischemic heart disease (IHD), myocardial ischemia, or simply heart disease, involves the reduction of blood flow to the heart muscle due to build-up of atherosclerotic pl ...

(CHD), hypertension and diabetes mellitus type 1. Genetic disorders that can often be prevented by proper nutritional intake of parents include

spina bifida Spina bifida (Latin for 'split spine'; SB) is a birth defect in which there is incomplete closing of the spine and the membranes around the spinal cord during early development in pregnancy. There are three main types: spina bifida occulta, men ...

, alcoholism and phenylketouria. Coronary heart disease Genes tied to nutrition manifest themselves through the body's sensitivity to food. In studies about CHD, there is a relationship between the disease and the presence of two alleles found at E and B apolipoprotein loci. These loci differences result in individualized reactions to the consumption of lipids. Some people experience increased weight gain and greater risk of CHD whereas others with different loci do not. Research has shown a direct correlation between the decrease risk of CHD and the decrease consumption of lipids across all populations.

Obesity

Obesity is one of the most widely studied topics in nutritional genomics. Due to genetic variations among individuals, each person could respond to diet differently. By exploring the interaction between dietary pattern and genetic factors, the field aims to suggest dietary changes that could prevent or reduce obesity. There appear to be some

SNPs In genetics, a single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP ; plural SNPs ) is a germline substitution of a single nucleotide at a specific position in the genome. Although certain definitions require the substitution to be present in a sufficiently larg ...

that make it more likely that a person will gain weight from a high fat diet; for people with AA genotype in the

FTO gene Fat mass and obesity-associated protein also known as alpha-ketoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase FTO is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the ''FTO'' gene located on chromosome 16. As one homolog in the AlkB family proteins, it is the first mR ...

showed a higher BMI compared those with TT genotype when having high fat or low carbohydrate dietary intake. The APO B SNP rs512535 is another diet-related variation; the A/G heterozygous genotype was found to have association with obesity (in terms of BMI and waist circumference) and for individuals with habitual high fat diet (>35% of energy intake), while individuals with GG homozygous genotype are likely to have a higher BMI compared to AA allele carriers. However, this difference is not found in low fat consuming group (<35% of energy intake).

Phenylketonuria

Phenylketonuria, otherwise known as PKU, is an uncommon autosomal recessive metabolic disorder that takes effect postpartum but the debilitating symptoms can be reversed with nutritional intervention.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nutritional Genomics Nutritional science Food science Genetic mapping Genomics Nutrition Medical genetics