Imagine you arriving at your nutritionist's office, and he has your medical records and all your genetic material decoded in an attached document and when he looks at you he says “you will probably develop prostate cancer in about 30 years, but thanks to the knowledge about nutrients and bioactive compounds of food we will follow a diet that the chance of developing this cancer will be less than 7%”. And you take a deep breath and say, “Dr. You can create a diet that I will follow to the letter.” Ultimately, we are far from that, but you know that thanks to a new branch of nutrition called nutrigenomics, which brings together knowledge about nutrients and genes, this scenario will possibly one day be part of patient care.
But first of all, let's better understand what nutrigenomics is. It is an area that studies the effects of nutrients and bioactive compounds in food on gene expression (the process by which the hereditary information contained in a given gene results in the production of messenger RNA and, subsequently, a protein, according to the constitution of each individual's DNA).
In 2003, the human genome project was completed, in which it was possible to decode the entire genetic map, showing our genome (all genetic material) is 99.9 % identical and only 0.1% is different. This difference is responsible for the color of our eyes, skin, hair and even the lesser or greater risk of developing chronic diseases and nutrient needs. In technical language we call these differences single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs).
To better understand the application of this, consider a very important polymorphism described in the PARy gene, involved in controlling triglyceride levels (a type of fat that is most abundant in the body) in the blood. People with this polymorphism (PARy) have higher levels of this fat compared to those who do not have this genetic variation. Another example relating polymorphism is the increase in HDL - good cholesterol due to the consumption of omega-3 (obtained by eating fish, for example) in individuals without the presence of a polymorphism in the APOA1 gene, related to fat metabolism. However, there is no increase in HDL – cholesterol in individuals with SNP in this gene.
Taking into account that changes in gene expression are related to the development of various chronic non-communicable diseases, such as various types of cancer, obesity and type 2 diabetes, nutrients and bioactive compounds can have beneficial or harmful actions depending on which genes are expressed. changed. To learn how bioactive compounds react with food, consider the example of omega-3 (a simpler form of fat known as polyunsaturated fatty acid). When consumed, this simple fat passes through the nucleus of the cell and joins with the proteins called “transcription factors” and they “twist” in the region that promotes the gene that is transcribed, forming messenger RNA that is then translated into proteins, responsible for all the cellular functions of the organism. It is important to say that everything occurs without affecting the structure of DNA.
Therefore, this new science reinforces the concept of personalized nutrition based on the person's DNA. It will certainly be an important instrument in health promotion based on the most targeted and effective recommendations. However, there is a long way to go, involving ethical aspects and very high costs for sequencing people's genes and applying them.
Sources:
Ong and Rogero: Nutrigenomics - Gene-Nutrient interaction for health promotion, 2009
Rogero- He teaches the future of Nutrition, available at http://www.crn3.org.br/atualidades/revistas/arquivos/nutrir_04_07.pdf