Nutrigenomics

The aim of the study was to examine the atheroprotective effect of dietary curcumin in a mouse model of atherosclerosis and to identify its cellular and molecular targets at the vascular level. Methods and results: ApoE -/mice were fed with curcumin at 0.2% (wt/wt) in diet for 4 months. This supplementation reduced the extent of atherosclerotic lesion by 26% and induced changes in expression of genes implicated in cell adhesion and transendothelial migration or cytoskeleton organization, as revealed by a transcriptomic analysis in the aorta. Expression profile of these genes suggests reduction in both leukocyte adhesion and transendothelial migration. In agreement with this hypothesis, we observed a reduction (-37%) in macrophage infiltration in the plaque, as measured by immunohistochemistry, and, in vitro, a lower adhesion of monocytes to TNF-␣-stimulated endothelial cells (-32%) after exposure to a nutritionally achievable concentration of curcumin. These changes in gene expression could be related to the observed increased expression of IB protein and decrease of TNF-␣-induced NF-B/DNA binding and NF-B-transcriptional activity upon exposure to curcumin. Conclusion: Our findings pointed out that the antiatherogenic effect of curcumin could be linked to its effect on gene networks and cell functions related to leukocyte adhesion and transendothelial migration via NF-B-dependent pathways.

Health nudge interventions to steer people into healthier lifestyles are increasingly applied by governments worldwide, and it is natural to look to such approaches to improve health by altering what people choose to eat. However, to produce policy recommendations that are likely to be effective, we need to be able to make valid predictions about the consequences of proposed interventions, and for this, we need a better understanding of the determinants of food choice. These determinants include dietary components (e.g. highly palatable foods and alcohol), but also diverse cultural and social pressures, cognitive-affective factors (perceived stress, health attitude, anxiety and depression), and familial, genetic and epigenetic influences on personality characteristics. In addition, our choices are influenced by an array of physiological mechanisms, including signals to the brain from the gastrointestinal tract and adipose tissue, which affect not only our hunger and satiety but also...

Insulin resistance has been shown to be the major contributing factor to the metabolic syndrome, which comprises a cluster of risk factors for metabolic aberrations such as obesity, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and hyperglycemia. Additionally, insulin resistance has been associated with the occurrence of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. Epidemiological studies indicate that obesity and diabetes have become alarmingly prevalent in recent years. Substantial evidence suggests that dietary interventions and regular exercise greatly improve body mass index and lipid profile as well as alleviate insulin resistance. Therefore, dietary supplements such as insulinsensitizing agents may be beneficial in the prevention and treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes. Numerous in vitro and in vivo studies suggest that chromium supplements, particularly niacin-bound chromium or chromium-nicotinate, may be effective in attenuating insulin resistance and lowering plasma cholesterol levels. Utilizing the powerful technology of nutrigenomics to identify the genes regulated by chromium supplementation may shed some light on the underlying mechanisms of chromium-gene interactions, and thus provide strategies to mitigate and prevent insulinresistance-related disorders.

Research on aquatic animal nutrition has demonstrated that the expression of related genes can be modified with different feeding components. From the nutrigenomics point of view, nutrients are feeding signals, which are detected by the cellular system of sensors and which influence the expression of genes and proteins and in consequence, the production of metabolites. Therefore, today, it is generally accepted that feeding components have a substantial impact in the expression of related genes, as well as in the welfare of reared aquatic animals. As fish have similar stress responses and sense of nociception to mammals, standards of fish welfare are rapidly emerging in the field of aquaculture. New fish welfare measures can dramatically improve farming outcomes, but a sustainable balance between implementation costs and their benefits must first be reached.

A B S T R A C T Ruminants have a very special niche in the animal kingdom, and are the most important livestock species providing milk, meat, and wool for humans from consumption of highly-fibrous feedstuffs. Cattle, goat and sheep have been widely-used for years as models to study ruminal fermentation and the mechanisms whereby tissues utilize nutrients for milk synthesis, growth, wool accretion, and reproduction. The advent of high-throughput technologies to study an animal's genome, proteome, and metabolome (i.e., " omics " tools) offered ruminant scientists the opportunity to study multiple levels of biological information to better understand the whole animal response to nutrition, environment, physiological state, and their interactions. The omics revolution gave rise to the field of nutrigenomics, i.e. the study of the genome-wide influences of nutrition through alteration in mRNA, protein, and metabolite expression or abundance. This field of research is relatively new in ruminants, and particularly sheep and goats. Dietary compounds affect gene expression directly or indirectly via interactions with transcription factors including ligand-dependent nuclear receptors. New knowledge generated through the application of functional analyses of transcriptomic, proteomic, and metabolomic data sets in goat and sheep is discussed.

Advances in molecular biology, emergence of novel techniques and huge amount of information generated in the post-Human Genome Project era have fostered the emergence of new disciplines in the field of nutritional research: Nutrigenomics deals with the effect of diet on gene expression whereas nutrigenetics refers to the impact of inherited traits on the response to a specific dietary pattern, functional food or supplement. Understanding the role of micronutrient supplementation with specific genetic backgrounds may provide an important contribution to a new optimum health strategy based on individualized nutritional treatment and may provide the strategies for the development of safer and more effective dietary interventions. This overview of the various aspects of supplementation of micronutrients in the era of nutrigenetics and nutrigenomics may provide a better understanding of novel nutritional research approach and provide an additional insight that can be applied to the daily dietary practice.

Makanan sebagai sumber protein, karbohidrat, lemak, vitamin, dan mineral sangat diperlukan bagi kesehatan fisik, pertumbuhan, dan mengatur proses metabolisme. Makanan yang berkualitas, aman dan menarik dapat diperoleh melalui perlakuan yang tepat pada setiap tahapan produksi, mulai dari persiapan, pengolahan, penyimpanan, pemasaran dan penggunaannya. Makanan yang tidak aman jika dikonsumsi dapat menimbulkan gangguan kesehatan bahkan berakibat pada kematian (Suryana, 1994, dalam Sundari, 2013). Undang-undang Nomor 7 Tahun 1996 menyatakan bahwa kualitas pangan yang dikonsumsi harus memenuhi beberapa kriteria, diantaranya adalah aman, bergizi, bermutu, dan dapat dijangkau oleh daya beli masyarakat. Aman maksudnya mencakup bebas dari cemaran biologis, mikrobiologi, kimia, logam berat, dan cemaran lain yang dapat mengganggu, merugikan dan membahayakan kesehatan manusia (Mudjajanto, 2014). Dalam Islam dikenal dengan istilah makanan halalan thayyiban. Makanan halalan (halal) yaitu makanan yang tidak diharamkan, dan tidak menyalahi hukum syari`at Islam untuk dikonsumsi sesuai Al-Qur'an dan sunnah nabi. Makanan yang baik atau dalam istilah agama thayyiban yaitu baik dari sudut pemenuhan kebutuhan gizi bagi tubuh, pengolahan makanan baik, dan bahan campuran yang baik. Saat ini, Industri pangan di Indonesia telah berkembang dengan pesat, ditandai dengan munculnya industri kecil dan industri rumah tangga yang 1

The Institute of Medicine recently convened a workshop to review the state of the various domains of nutritional genomics research and policy and to provide guidance for further development and translation of this knowledge into nutrition practice and policy. Nutritional genomics holds the promise to revolutionize both clinical and public health nutrition practice and facilitate the establishment of (a) genome-informed nutrient and food-based dietary guidelines for disease prevention and healthful aging, (b) individualized medical nutrition therapy for disease management, and (c) better targeted public health nutrition interventions (including micronutrient fortification and supplementation) that maximize benefit and minimize adverse outcomes within genetically diverse human populations. As the field of nutritional genomics matures, which will include filling fundamental gaps in knowledge of nutrient-genome interactions in health and disease and demonstrating the potential benefits of customizing nutrition prescriptions based on genetics, registered dietitians will be faced with the opportunity of making genetically driven dietary recommendations aimed at improving human health.

Nutritional research is undergoing a remarkable transformation driven by new technological tools. Because of the complexity of the components present in food and how they may interact with the biochemical networks of living organisms, nutrition cannot be considered a reductionist discipline. More holistic approaches, which are capable of gathering comprehensive, high-throughput amounts of data, appear to best enhance our understanding of the role of food in health and disease. In this context, global metabolite analysis, or 'metabolomics', is becoming an appealing research tool for nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics scientists. The purpose of the present review is to highlight some potential applications of metabolomics in nutrition research.

La epigenética estudia los procesos de expresión géni- ca que no requieren de la modificación de la secuencia de  AdN, es decir, se ocupa de las diferentes trayectorias que un genotipo puede tomar a lo largo del desarrollo del organismo. Estos mecanismos están implicados en procesos biológicos básicos como la diferenciación celular o la selección sexual, en el desarrollo de enfermedades complejas como el síndrome de Rett y en trastornos psiquiátricos como la esquizofrenia y la depresión, entre otros. Los estudios epigenéticos están proporcionando evidencias de que los eventos ambientales y los factores psicosociales pueden modificar el epigenoma.

There is growing interest in applying metabolic profiling technologies to food science as this approach is now embedded into the foodomics toolbox. This review aims at exploring how metabolic profiling can be applied to the development of functional foods.

Bibliographic Indices. This publication is listed in bibliographic services, including Current Contents® and PubMed/MEDLINE. Disclaimer. The statements, opinions and data contained in this publication are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publisher and the editor(s). The appearance of advertisements in the book is not a warranty, endorsement, or approval of the products or services advertised or of their effectiveness, quality or safety. The publisher and the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to persons or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content or advertisements.

The genetic makeup that individuals inherit from their ancestors is responsible for variation in responses to food and susceptibility to chronic diseases such as Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Common variations in gene sequences, such as single nucleotide polymorphisms, produce differences in complex traits such as height or weight potential, food metabolism, food-gene interactions, and disease susceptibilities. Nutritional genomics, or nutrigenomics, is the study of how foods affect the expression of genetic information in an individual and how an individual's genetic makeup affects the metabolism and response to nutrients and other bioactive components in food. Since both diet and genes alter one's health and susceptibility to disease, identifying genes that are regulated by diet and that cause or contribute to chronic diseases could result in the development of diagnostic tools, individualized intervention, and eventually strategies for maintaining health.

La presentazione, redatta in occasione di un esame, prende in considerazione l'interazione tra gli alimenti e l'istone deacetilasi.
In particolare si è voluto porre attenzione alle:
- diete iperlipidiche
- diete iperglicemiche
e alcune sostanze quali:
- sulforafano
- curcumina
- Epigallocatechina 3 gallato
- butirrato

In Italy, patients with dyslipidemia account for 15-20% of the adult population with major healthcare and socio-economic impact. According to the ESC/EAS guidelines for the management of dyslipidemias, desirable cholesterol and triglyceride levels can be achieved with a synergy between drug treatment and adequate diet therapy. However, what diets should be adopted? In this review article, different types of dietary treatments are compared, with a special focus on diet education. The new scientific frontier of nutrigenetics is also discussed.

Despite progress that has been made in the treatment of obesity, the epidemic continues to rise worldwide. While pharmacological treatment of obesity may be effective, medications may have significant side effects and can be potentially fatal. This review will provide significant evidence to substantiate the existence of Reward Deficiency Syndrome in Obesity and the role of catecholaminergic pathways in aberrant substance seeking behavior, in particular cravings for carbohydrates. The genetic basis for generalized craving behavior will be established. Evidence to support the augmentation of precursor amino acid therapy and enkephalinase, MOA and COMT inhibition leading to enhanced levels of neurotransmitters: serotonin, enkephalins, GABA and dopamine/norepinephrine as well increasing insulin sensitivity (affecting dopamine neuronal synthesis regulation) through the use of certain neurometabolic optimizers will also be provided. This review article cites many published studies to support a conceptual paradigm shift towards the use of this proposed nutrigenomic formula. The analysis and research preceding this formulation is outlined. This formulation has a generalized anti-craving effect and can inhibit carbohydrate bingeing, inducing significant healthy fat loss and prevention of relapse. This is the first time that components of this formula have been combined, at the dosage levels indicated with the goal of promoting successful and sustainable body recomposition. We are encouraging other laboratories to further evaluate Neuroadtagen Amino-Acid Therapy (NAAT)/Nurometabolic optimizers as a putative anti-obesity complex in larger controlled blinded studies and await interpretation of must these needed studies.

Pregnancy is a vital time of growth and development during which maternal nutrition significantly influences the future health of both mother and baby. During pregnancy, the fetus experiences a critical period of plasticity. Epigenetics, specifically DNA methylation, plays an important role here. As nutrition is influential for DNA methylation, this review aims to determine if maternal nutrition during pregnancy can modify the offspring's epigenome at birth. Research focuses on micronutrients and methyl donors such as folate and B vitamins. Evidence suggests that maternal nutrition does not largely influence global methylation patterns, particularly in nutrient-replete populations; however, an important impact on gene-specific methylation is observed. A link is shown between maternal nutrition and the methylome of the offspring; however, there remains a paucity of research. With the potential to use DNA methylation patterns at birth to predict health of the child in later life, it is vital that further research be carried out.

The immune system is exquisitely sensitive to environmental changes. Diet constitutes one of the major environmental factors that exerts a profound effect on immune system development and function. Epigenetics is the study of mitotically heritable, yet potentially reversible, molecular modifications to DNA and chromatin without alteration to the underlying DNA sequence. Nutriepigenomics is an emerging discipline examining the role of dietary influences on gene expression. There is increasing evidence that the epigenetic mechanisms that regulate gene expression during immune differentiation are directly affected by dietary factors or indirectly through modifications in gut microbiota induced by different dietary habits. Short-chain fatty acids, in particular butyrate, produced by selected bacteria stains within gut microbiota, are crucial players in this network.

The search for knowledge regarding healthy/adequate food has increased in the last decades among the world population, researchers, nutritionists, and health professionals. Since ancient times, humans have known that environment and food can interfere with an individual's health condition, and have used food and plants as medicines. With the advance of science, especially after the conclusion of the Human Genome Project (HGP), scientists started questioning if the interaction between genes and food bioactive compounds could positively or negatively influence an individual's health. In order to assess this interaction between genes and nutrients, the term "Nutrigenomics" was created. Hence, Nutrigenomics corresponds to the use of biochemistry, physiology, nutrition, genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, transcriptomics, and epigenomics to seek and explain the existing reciprocal interactions between genes and nutrients at a molecular level. The discovery of these interactions (gene-nutrient) will aid the prescription of customized diets according to each individual's genotype. Thus, it will be possible to mitigate the symptoms of existing diseases or to prevent future illnesses, especially in the area of Nontransmissible Chronic Diseases (NTCDs), which are currently considered an important world public health problem.

Descripción: hierba siempreverde, espinosa, rizoma robusto, tallo de hasta 2 m de alto. Hojas alternas, oblongas, delgadas, lobuladas, haz verde, envés blanquecino, sin espinas, de hasta 0.9 m de largo. Flores azul-violeta, grandes cabezuelas terminales agrupadas por un receptáculo cónico carnoso de 10 cm de ancho, envuelto por brácteas verdes, carnosas, sobrepuestas. El fruto es un aquenio. Semillas negras, lisas.

The modern food system feeds six billion people with remarkable diversity, safety, and nutrition. Yet, the current rise in diet-related diseases is compromising health and devaluing many aspects of modern agriculture. Steps to increase the nutritional quality of individual foods will assist in personalizing health and in guiding individuals to achieve superior health. Nutrigenomics is the scientific field of the genetic basis for varying susceptibilities to disease and the diverse responses to foods. Although some of these genetic determinants will be simple and amenable to personal genotyping as the means to predict health, in practice most will not. As a result, genotyping will not be the secret to personalizing diet and health. Human assessment technologies from imaging to proteomics and metabolomics are providing tools to both understand and accurately assess the nutritional phenotype of individuals. The business models are also emerging to bring these assessment capabilities to...

The field of nutrigenomics shows tremendous promise for improved understanding of the effects of dietary intake on health. The knowledge that metabolic pathways may be altered in individuals with genetic variants in the presence of certain dietary exposures offers great potential for personalized nutrition advice. However, although considerable resources have gone into improving technology for measurement of the genome and biological systems, dietary intake assessment remains inadequate. Each of the methods currently used has limitations that may be exaggerated in the context of gene × nutrient interaction in large multiethnic studies. Because of the specificity of most gene × nutrient interactions, valid data are needed for nutrient intakes at the individual level. Most statistical adjustment efforts are designed to improve estimates of nutrient intake distributions in populations and are unlikely to solve this problem. An improved method of direct measurement of individual usual dietary intake that is unbiased across populations is urgently needed.

Neural tube defects (NTDs) are one of the commonest birth defects with a high incidence in India. However, few studies have systematically looked into the etio-pathogeneis of NTDs, which mainly includes nutritional deficiencies and genetic predisposition. Efforts are afoot for universal food fortification with folic acid in the hope of preventing NTDs, without factual evidence of folate deficiency in the target population. We conducted a review of Indian literature on NTDs focusing on the role of folate and vitamin B12 nutrition and common genetic polymorphisms in 1-carbon metabolism. We performed a literature search of Medline and Indian Medlars (www. indmed.nic.in) for articles using following search terms: Neural tube defect and India, published up to November 2008, on human subjects. We did not include individual case reports and case series describing surgical and medical management, genetic syndromes where NTD was only one of the features or unusual associations of NTDs with o...

The aim of this study is to apply the Nutrient Analysis Critical Control Point (NACCP) process to ensure that the highest nutrient levels in food can determine a beneficial effect on the health of the consumer. The NACCP process involves a sequence of analysis and controls that depart from raw material production to the evaluation of the effect of nutrition on health. It is articulated through the following points: 1) identification of nutrient level in the food; 2) identification of critical control points (environmental, genetic data, chemical and physical data, production technology, distribution and administration); 3) establishing critical limits that can impoverish and damage the nutrient; 4) establishing measures to monitor; 5) establishing corrective actions. We selected as biomarkers the total phenolic content (TPC) and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) of a genotyped Italian hazelnut cultivars (Corylus e avellana L.). We performed a clinical study evaluating: a) nutritional status; b) clinical-biochemical parameters; c) low density lipoprotein oxidation (LDL-ox); d) the expression level changes of oxidative stress pathway genes in the blood cell at baseline and after 40 g/die of hazelnut consumption. In this study, we found a significant lowering (p ≤ 0.005) of LDL oxidized proteins, in association with the consumption of 40 g/d of hazelnuts. Also, we found a significant variation (p ≤ 0.005) of gene expression of antioxidant and pro-oxidant genes, between the intake of dietary with and without hazelnuts. This results support the hypothesis that the NACCP process could be applied to obtain significant benefits in terms of primary prevention and for contributing to the amelioration of food management at the consumer level.

Evolutionary medicine has gained increasing attention in recent years by implying that a food selection similar to that of the Paleolithic may prevent diseases. This article is an attempt to characterize the food selection during hominid evolution based on current paleontologic research. Hominid evolution can be divided into multiple phases; and the nutrition ecology of the plio-pleistocene hominids can be tentatively characterized. According to new results of isotope analysis, the Australopithecines did ingest small amounts of animal food already 4.5–2.5 million years ago, while consuming a mainly plant based abrasive diet, which was similar to that of recent chimpanzees. Compared to the Australopithecines, the first representatives of Homo such as H. erectus and H. habilis (2.5–1.5 million years before today) were likely to consume a diet providing more energy and nutrients, which might also have been related to the more gracile dentition. Like H. sapiens the members of this species also consumed an omnivore diet. Assumptions about the nutrition ecology of the archaic and the modern H. sapiens are often concluded by analogies based on the living of historic and recent foragers (hunter-gatherers). As the few detailed ethnographic data show, the diet composition of the individual hunter-gatherer groups varied considerably and ranged from a nearly pure animal-based diet to a diet dominated by plants. All in all the eating behaviour of prehistoric humans was, like that of their pleistocene ancestors, very flexible. Except for focussing on an energy and nutrient-rich diet there was neither specialization in certain foods, nor a typical plant-animal ratio nor a defined macronutrient distribution. Correspondingly, it is impossible to justify details given by representatives of evolutionary medicine on "the Paleolithic diet" empirically. Die These, wonach eine an der Nahrungsauswahl des Paläolithikums orientierte Ernährungsweise von präventivmedizinischer Relevanz sein soll, ist in den letzten Jahren auf wachsendes Interesse gestoßen. Vor diesem Hintergrund stellt dieser Beitrag den Versuch dar, die Nahrungsauswahl im Verlauf der Hominisation auf Basis der aktuellen paläontologischen Forschungsergebnisse zu rekonstruieren. Bei der Hominisation lassen sich mehrere Stadien differenzieren und die Ernährungsökologie der plio-pleistozänen Homininen versuchsweise charakterisieren. Neueren Isotopen-Auswertungen zufolge sollen die Australopithecinen im Zeitraum von vor 4,5–2,5 Mio. Jahren bereits geringe Mengen tierischer Nahrung aufgenommen, jedoch eine vorwiegend harte, abrasive pflanzliche Kost konsumiert haben, die der rezenter Schimpansen ähnelte. Im Vergleich zu den Australopithecinen dürften die ersten Vertreter von Homo wie H. erectus und H. habilis (2,5–1,5 Mio Jahre vor heute) eine energetisch gehaltvollere, nährstoffkonzentriertere Kost verzehrt haben, was auch mit der Grazilisierung des Gebisses in Verbindung steht. Wie H. sapiens sollen die Mitglieder dieser Spezies eine omnivore Ernährungsstrategie verfolgt haben. Aussagen zur Ernährungsökologie des archaischen und des modernen H. sapiens gründen vielfach auf Analogieschlüssen zur Lebensweise historischer und rezenter Wildbeuter (Jäger und Sammler). Wie die wenigen detaillierten ethnographischen Daten zeigen, variiert die Zusammensetzung der Kost bei den einzelnen Jägern und Sammlern erheblich und reicht von einer fast rein animalischen bis hin zu einer vorwiegend auf pflanzlichen Ressourcen basierenden Nahrung. Insgesamt stellt sich das Ernährungsverhalten des prähistorischen Menschen wie das seiner pleistozänen Vorfahren als sehr flexibel dar. Mit Ausnahme der Fokussierung auf eine energetisch hochwertige, nährstoffreiche Kost lässt sich keine Spezialisierung auf bestimmte Lebensmittel, ein charakteristisches Pflanzen-Tier-Verhältnis oder eine definierte Makronährstoffverteilung erkennen. Entsprechend ist keine empirisch begründete Aussage dazu möglich, wie die vielfach als "artgerecht" propagierte "Steinzeiternährung" im Detail beschaffen war.

Considerable information on the chemistry and biological properties of dietary phytochemicals has accumulated over the past three decades. The scattering of the data in tens of thousands publications and the diversity of experimental approaches and reporting formats all make the exploitation of this information very difficult. Some of the data have been collected and stored in electronic databases so that they can be automatically updated and retrieved. These databases will be particularly important in the evaluation of the effects on health of phytochemicals and in facilitating the exploitation of nutrigenomic data. The content of over 50 databases on chemical structures, spectra, metabolic pathways in plants, occurrence and concentrations in foods, metabolism in humans and animals, biological properties, and effects on health or surrogate markers of health is reviewed. Limits of these databases are emphasized, and needs and recommendations for future developments are underscored. More investments in the construction of databases on phytochemicals and their effects on health are clearly needed. They should greatly contribute to the success of future research in this field.

Nutrigenomics attempts to define the molecular relationships between nutrition and the response of genes, as well as establishing the expected response of the individual to nutritional substances depending on the person’s basic genetic makeup.
The ultimate aim is to extrapolate how such subtle changes can affect human health. Nutrigenomics focuses on the effect of nutrients on the genome, proteome and metabolome. By determining the mechanism of the effects of nutrients or the effects of a nutritional regime, Nutrigenomics tries to define the relationships between these specific nutrients and specific nutrient regimes (diets) on human health. Nutrigenomics has been associated with the idea of personalized nutrition based on genotype. While there is hope that nutrigenomics will ultimately enable such personalised dietary advice a great deal more work needs to be done in this area.
The main objectives  of this lecture are:
1) To identify and validate nutrigenetic, nutritional epigenetic & transcriptomic, proteomic and metabolomic biomarkers of effect and susceptibility.
2) Develop effective clinical and nutritional intervention programs in line with recent nutrigenomic information

Vitamin D is a micronutrient that is needed for optimal health throughout the whole life. Vitamin D 3 (cholecalciferol) can be either synthesized in the human skin upon exposure to the UV light of the sun, or it is obtained from the diet. If the photoconversion in the skin due to reduced sun exposure (e.g., in wintertime) is insufficient, intake of adequate vitamin D from the diet is essential to health. Severe vitamin D deficiency can lead to a multitude of avoidable illnesses; among them are well-known bone diseases like osteoporosis, a number of autoimmune diseases, many different cancers, and some cardiovascular diseases like hypertension are being discussed. Vitamin D is found naturally in only very few foods. Foods containing vitamin D include some fatty fish, fish liver oils, and eggs from hens that have been fed vitamin D and some fortified foods in countries with respective regulations. Based on geographic location or food availability adequate vitamin D intake might not be sufficient on a global scale. The International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) has collected the 25-hydroxy-vitamin D plasma levels in populations of different countries using published data and developed a global vitamin D map. This map illustrates the parts of the world, where vitamin D did not reach adequate 25-hydroxyvitamin D plasma levels: 6.7% of the papers report 25-hydroxyvitamin D plasma levels below 25 nmol/L, which indicates vitamin D deficiency, 37.3% are below 50 nmol/Land only 11.9% found 25-hydroxyvitamin D plasma levels above 75 nmol/L target as suggested by vitamin D experts. The vitamin D map is adding further evidence to the vitamin D insufficiency pandemic debate, which is also an issue in the developed world. Besides malnutrition, a condition where the diet does not match to provide the adequate levels of nutrients including micronutrients for growth and maintenance, we obviously have a situation where enough nutrients were consumed, but lacked to reach sufficient vitamin D micronutrient levels. The latter situation is known as hidden hunger. The inadequate vitamin D status impacts on health care costs, which in turn could result in significant savings, if corrected. Since little is known about the effects on the molecular level that accompany the pandemic like epigenetic imprinting, the insufficiency-triggered gene regulations or the genetic background influence on the body to maintain metabolic resilience, future research will be needed. The nutrition community is highly interested in the molecular mechanism that underlies the vitamin D insufficiency caused effect. In recent years, novel large scale technologies have become available that allow the simultaneous acquisition of transcriptome, epigenome, proteome, or metabolome data in cells of organs. These important methods are now used for nutritional approaches summarized in emerging scientific fields of nutrigenomics, nutrigenetics, or nutriepigenetics. It is believed that with the help of these novel concepts further understanding can be generated to develop future sustainable nutrition solutions to safeguard nutrition security.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) encompassed several chronic inflammatory disorders leading to damage of the gastrointestinal tract (GI). The 2 principal forms of these disorders are ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn disease (CD). Bacteria are involved in the etiology of IBD, and the genetic susceptibility, environmental factors, and lifestyle factors can affect the individual's predisposition to IBD. The review discusses the potential role of environmental factors such as diet and microbiota as well as genetics in the etiology of IBD. It is suggested that microbial ecosystem in the human bowel colonizing the gut in many different microhabitats can be influence by diet, leading to formation of metabolic processes that are essential form the bowel metabolism.

Childhood obesity is a major worldwide health problem. Intervention programs to ameliorate the rate of obesity have been designed and implemented; yet the epidemic has no end near in sight. AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) has become one of the most important key elements in energy control, appetite regulation, myogenesis, adipocyte differentiation, and cellular stress management. Obesity is a multifactorial disease, which has a very strong genetic component, especially epigenetic factors. The intrauterine milieu has a determinant impact on adult life, since the measures taken for survival are kept throughout life thanks to epigenetic modification. Nutrigenomics studies the influence of certain food molecules on the metabolome profile, raising the question of an individualized obesity therapy according to metabolic (and probably) genetic features. Metformin, an insulin sensitizing agent, its known to lower insulin resistance and enhance metabolic profile, with an additional weight reduction capacity, via activation of AMPK. Exercise is coadjutant for lifestyle modifications, which also activates AMPK in several ways contributing to glucose and fat oxidation. The following review examines AMPK's role in obesity, applying its use as a tool for childhood and adolescent obesity.