Award details

BBSRC Institute Strategic Programme: Food Microbiome and Health (FMH) - Partner Grant

Reference	BB/X020029/1
Principal Investigator / Supervisor	Professor Susan Lanham-New
Co-Investigators / Co-Supervisors
Institution	University of Surrey
Department	Nutrition & Metabolism
Funding type	Research
Value (£)	816,864
Status	Current
Type	Research Grant
Start date	28/03/2023
End date	27/03/2028
Duration	60 months

Abstract

This project represents the University of Surrey's contribution to the delivery of the following Institute Strategic Programme Grant: BBSRC Institute Strategic Programme: Food Microbiome and Health BB/X011054/1 for which our expertise in strategies for improving vitamin D status in the general population and in 'at risk' groups is highly complementary (in Theme 4). We have over 30 years experience in designing and implementing human nutrition randomised controlled trials (RCT) to prevent micronutrient deficiency, with specific expertise in vitamin D. We have applied this knowledge extensively at the UK (H.M. Government SACN) and the EU (EFSA) level with respect to setting vitamin D dietary requirements (SACN) and tolerable upper limits for vitamin D (EFSA). Our three objectives are as follows: 1. Prepare the designed vitamin D biofortification RCT using gene-edited (GE) tomatoes and placebo tomatoes for submittance to the relevant Academic Institution(s) and NHS Ethic Committee(s) and register the Vitamin D RCT to Clinical Trials.Gov. 2. Implement the biofortified vitamin D GE tomato vs placebo tomato RCT including: (i) selection and screening of potential subjects; (ii) measurement of habitual dietary intake and lifestyle characteristics at baseline, 4 weeks and 8 weeks intervention; (iii) assessment of UVB exposure at baseline, 4 weeks and 8 weeks; (iv) determination of the health-benefits of the biofortified vitamin D GE tomato with specific reference to changes in vitamin D status and markers of calcium metabolism and musculo-skeletal health. 3. Define the benefits - (in relation to health, economic, sustainability) at the general population level and in 'at-risk' minority groups of increasing vitamin D intake and improving vitamin D status using plant-based approaches and undertake specific dietary vitamin D modelling work using 'BIG' datasets (including the UK Biobank, the UK NDNS and the USA NHANES).

Summary

Globally, poor diet accounts for 10 million (22%) of all adult deaths (every year with cardiovascular disease as the leading cause. The UK has both the highest obesity rates and worst healthy life expectancy in Europe, hence the urgent need to switch to a more nutritionally balanced diet. Growing environmental, ethical and health concerns are motivating transition to plant-rich diets, a trend that will increase because of global population and climate change. The changes in our dietary habits provide unique opportunities for designing novel plantbased foods that improve health. However, this dietary shift also brings challenges as plant-based diets contain processed carbohydrate-rich foods with high glycaemic/ calorie content that tend to have lower availability of key macronutrients, such as protein, micronutrients including vitamins D and B12, and minerals such as iron, zinc and iodine. Many of the nutrient challenges associated with plant-based diets are being addressed through processes such as biofortification and new technologies such as gene-editing. There is need to understand the effect of these approaches not only on food structure and composition, but also how they impact the GI microbiome and host responses. Strategy, aims and objectives: A key, achievable strategy for addressing these challenges is to focus on the relationships between plant-based food, the GI microbiome and human health. Consequently, our overall aim is to unpick the complicated relationship between particular plant-based foods, GI microbes and health through mechanistic research into these interactions. The FMH ISP is organised into four themes (Ts) comprising targeted objectives that reflect the pathway and processing of plant-based food by the body to provide health benefits: - T1 Food structure/composition/digestion and nutrient release in the GIT; - T2 Role of plant-based foods and macro- and micro-nutrients on the GIT microbiota structure and function; - T3 How nutrients impact on the integrity and physiology of key organ systems e.g. the GIT itself, liver and brain; - T4 Exploiting the knowledge gained from our mechanistic studies to evaluate new food and microbiota-based interventions that promote or improve long-life health in proof-of-concept human trials. Our research aims to provide a mechanistic understanding of how the structure and composition of plant-based foods can be used to improve health and reduce the threat of disease through its interaction with the GIT microbiome. The ISP is organised into four themes (Ts) with state-of-the-art, specialist and enabling technologies. In T1, we will use plant-based foods that can be modified through gene editing/ biofortification/ processing to determine how these foods are digested and the released nutrients transformed and/or absorbed throughout the GIT using QIB's unique in vitro digestion and intestinal fermentation models (e.g. SHIME); food analytics; metabolomics and vitamin diagnostics.

Committee	Not funded via Committee
Research Topics	X – not assigned to a current Research Topic
Research Priority	X – Research Priority information not available
Research Initiative	X - not in an Initiative
Funding Scheme	X – not Funded via a specific Funding Scheme

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