Nutrigenomics involves the characterization of gene products, their physiological function, and their interactions. It focuses on the effect of nutrients on the genome, proteome, and metabolome (fig., and explains the relationship between these specific nutrients and nutrient regimes on human health. A compelling solution for the consistency of nutritional studies on model organisms, including Drosophila, is detailed reporting on the nutritional components of
complex diets.
Lynn Ferguson, professor of nutrition at Auckland University in New Zealand and program manager at the New Zealand National Centre for Research Excellence in Nutrigenomics, also says: “The control of food intake is strongly influenced by gene variants that code for taste receptors or for a range of peripheral signal peptides such as insulin, leptin, ghrelin, cholecystokinin and corresponding receptors. Nutrigenomics is a young scientific discipline that investigates changes brought about by nutrition in the genome and therefore addresses the intersection of three topics, namely health, nutrition and genomics. Determining the optimal concentration of micronutrients required to keep cells in a genomically stable state remains one of the biggest challenges for nutrigenomics researchers. Nutrigenomics research advocates have identified population-wide prevention and treatment of vitamin deficiencies as a top public health priority
.
Nutrigenomics therefore originally referred to the study of the effects of nutrients on the expression of an individual’s genetic makeup. With ever lower prices for analyzing SNPs among individuals, the potential for optimising nutrition based on population-level nutrigenomic approaches seems truly impressive. One example of how controversial these concerns can be is the fact that some studies have reported the protective effects of folate in the development of colorectal cancer, whereas other studies have found that this nutrient can promote the growth of this cancer once it has developed. The lack of awareness of such interactions between SNP, diet and lifestyle is not only a disadvantage for public health education but may also lead to null findings in epidemiological studies, although certain parts of the study population are actually highly susceptible to diseases associated with
a particular SNP.
Much remains to be discovered and determined in bringing together the science of bioinformatics, nutrition, epidemiology, molecular biology, and genomics, but future nutrigenomics research will undoubtedly provide further fascinating insights into both nutritional science and the human genome. Fenech developed the concept of “Genome Health Nutrigenomics,” a science that investigates how a lack or excess of nutrients can cause genome mutations at the base sequence or chromosome level. Since neither genetic changes nor calorie restrictions can be used in humans, understanding how diet alters the genome (nutrigenomics) and thus proteome expression patterns is a crucial parameter for designing dietary measures to promote healthy aging. Drosophila performs several complex physiological functions, such as digestion, absorption, and processes following absorption of nutrients, making this organism an ideal in vivo experimental platform
for nutrigenomics studies.
Recent studies have shown that the function of this complex nutrient sensing mechanism depends (directly or indirectly) on various types of nutrition and nutrients. Drosophila is a well-researched organism with sophisticated genetics and a fully annotated sequenced
genome, in which ~ 75% of human disease-related genes have functional orthologs
.