What is Nutrigenomics?

Until recently, nutrition research concentrated on nutrient deficiencies and impairment of health. The advent of genomics -interpreted broadly as a suite of high-throughput technologies for the generation, processing, and application of scientific information about the composition and functions of genomes - has created unprecedented opportunities for increasing our understanding of how nutrients modulate gene and protein expression and ultimately influence cellular and organismal metabolism. Nutrigenomics can be seen as the combination of molecular nutrition research and genomics. The diverse tissue and organ-specific effects of bioactive dietary components include gene expression patterns (transcriptome), organization of the chromatin (epigenome), protein expression patterns including post-translational modifications (proteome) as well as metabolite profiles (metabolome). Nutrigenomics promotes an increased understanding of how nutrition influences metabolic pathways and homeostatic control, how this regulation is disturbed in the early phases of diet-related disease, and the extent to which individual sensitizing genotypes contribute to such diseases. Nutrigenomics is the new strategy in nutrition research that will lead to its development towards Nutritional Science 2.0.

This necessary evolution will eventually to evidence-based dietary intervention strategies for restoring health and fitness and for preventing diet-related disease.

Why we need Nutrigenomics?

Because it is the only way to learn more on:

• Mechanisms: Nutrigenomics provides mechanistic insights into how nutrition works (evidence-based nutrition)
• Markers: Nutrigenomics allows comprehensive and deep phenotyping and the identification of early biomarkers for pre-disease states.
• Personalized nutrition: Nutrigenomics allows to develop new smart foods to keep people healthy and fit according to their individual needs.
   

read for more:

Müller M,  Kersten S.
Nutrigenomics: Goals and Perspectives.
Nature Reviews Genetics 2003;4:315 -322 (PDF)

Corthesy-Theulaz I, den Dunnen JT, Ferre P, Geurts JM, Müller M, van Belzen N, van Ommen B. 
Nutrigenomics: The Impact of Biomics Technology on Nutrition Research.
Ann Nutr Metab. 2005;49:355-365 

Kaput J, Ordovas JM, Ferguson L, van Ommen B, Rodriguez RL, Allen L, Ames BN, Dawson K, German B, Krauss R, 
Malyj W, Archer MC, Barnes S, Bartholomew A, Birk R, van Bladeren P, Bradford KJ, Brown KH, Caetano R, Castle D, 
Chadwick R, Clarke S, Clement K, Cooney CA, Corella D, Manica da Cruz IB, Daniel H, Duster T, E Ebbesson SO, Elliott R, 
Fairweather-Tait S, Felton J, Fenech M, Finley JW, Fogg-Johnson N, Gill-Garrison R, Gibney MJ, Gillies PJ, Gustafsson JA, 
Hartman Iv JL, He L, Hwang JK, Jais JP, Jang Y, Joost H, Junien C, Kanter M, Kibbe WA, Koletzko B, Korf BR, Kornman K, 
Krempin DW, Langin D, Lauren DR, Ho Lee J, Leveille GA, Lin SJ, Mathers J, Mayne M, McNabb W, Milner JA, Morgan P, Müller M, 
Nikolsky Y, van der Ouderaa F, Park T, Pensel N, Perez-Jimenez F, Poutanen K, Roberts M, Saris WH, Schuster G, Shelling AN, 
Simopoulos AP, Southon S, Tai ES, Towne B, Trayhurn P, Uauy R, Visek WJ, Warden C, Weiss R, Wiencke J, Winkler J, 
Wolff GL, Zhao-Wilson X, Zucker JD. 
The case for strategic international alliances to harness nutritional genomics for public and personal healthdagger.
Br J Nutr. 2005;94:623-632. 

Afman L, Müller M. 
Nutrigenomics: from molecular nutrition to prevention of disease.
J Am Diet Assoc. 2006;106:569-76 (PDF)

Joost HG, Gibney MJ, Cashman KD, Gorman U, Hesketh JE, Müller M, van Ommen B, Williams CM, Mathers JC
Personalised nutrition: status and perspectives
Br J Nutr. 2007 Jul;98(1):26-31

Ben van Ommen, Jaap Keijer, Robert Kleemann, Ruan Elliott, Christian A. Drevon, Harry McArdle, Mike Gibney and Michael Müller
The challenges for molecular nutrition research 2: quantification of the nutritional phenotype
Genes Nutr (2008) 3:41–49  (PDF)