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Understanding How Nutrition Can Prevent the Development of 'Ill-Being'

http://www.bulletins-electroniques.com/actualites/61846.htm

During the next Taste-Nutrition-Health Congress (GNS 2010, Goût, Nutrition, Santé) of the Vitagora competitive cluster on March 23 & 24, 2010, in Dijon, INRA Research Director Sophie Layé will be speaking on the topic of 'well-being'. We are all aware of it without always being able to put a finger on what it is, but always happy to enjoy it. How can a scientist address this issue, model it and understand how nutrition, especially certain nutrients, can prevent the development of mood and cognitive disorders, in other words "ill-being" that turns out to be an excellent indicator for measuring 'well-being'. At the INRA PsyNuGen Joint Research Unit in Bordeaux, the Nutrition, Cytokines and Psychiatric Disorders team headed by Sophie Layé is conducting research in this field which is of particular interest to the pharmaceutical and food industries.

When attacked by an intruder such as a virus or a bacterium, the body reacts by churning out alarm signals called cytokines that will activate the immune system. The signals will also warn the brain, allowing it to develop a defense strategy that will translate into mood and sleep disorders, memory loss, appetite loss, and withdrawal. These reversible behaviors are governed by the action of the cytokines that act on various brain structures. However, cytokine synthesis is not always associated with a body's state of defense. For instance, a small yet prolonged activation of the signals has been observed in some elderly people whose immune systems are deregulated, people following a treatment for certain diseases, or even the obese. The signals are toxic for the neurons and may lead to the development of attention disorders or extremely serious depressive situations.

Understanding the Anti-inflammatory Nature of Certain Micronutrients

At the PsyNuGen Joint Research Unit, which has three teams, Sophie Layé's team is focusing on the preventive role of nutrition in the development of mood and cognitive disorders that are alterations typical of a state of 'ill-being'. "We are trying to understand how some micronutrients with observable anti-inflammatory activity can help prevent the development of these problems," she explained. The researchers are taking a closer look at polyunsaturated fatty acids of which large amounts are found in the brain. There are two forms, better known as Omega-3 found in fish, shellfish and rapeseed oil and Omega-6 found in sunflower oil. The scientists have proven that young mice on an Omega-3 poor diet develop more memory problems with age and show higher levels of inflammatory cytokines than mice on a balanced diet.

The INSERM led COGINUT [1] project sponsored by P Barberger-Gateau and funded by Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR, French national research agency) studies the impact of the nutritional status in polyunsaturated fatty acids and antioxidants on brain aging (dementia, cognitive decline and mood disorders) in the elderly. The Bordeaux-based team, which has been involved in the project since 2006, is working on individuals over 65 with documented eating habits. "The results we have obtained show that in persons with chronic immune activation, the Omega-3 level is the lowest. Their quality of life is also more altered than for people with no immune activity," Sophie Layé concluded. Actually, chronic mood disorders in the elderly may result from an overproduction of cytokines linked to an Omega-3 deficiency.

Growing Interest from Industry

The scientists showed that in animals, Omega-3 rich nutrition delivered as short chains, i.e., mostly from plant sources, is not effective enough to prevent the development of innate immune deterioration in the brain whereas using long chains over short periods has positive effects. Now the Nutrition, Cytokines and Psychiatric Disorders team is running tests on elderly subjects. "Prevention means that we have to understand what type of micronutrient must be used as well as what form of micronutrient and - probably - in what nutritional combinations. For instance, we may have to associate antioxidants to increase effectiveness."

This explains the growing interest of industry operators in the pharmaceutical and food industries in the research that could eventually lead to several dietary recommendations, or even to the market launch of special products. "Let's take the example of a diabetic who is being medically treated for the metabolic disorder. Nutritional recommendations could actually contribute to improving the mood disorders of this type of pathology and that are not treated today." Sophie Layé underscored.

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[1] Cognition, antioxidants, fatty acids: multidisciplinary approach to nutrition in brain aging.

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- Joint Research Unit PsyNuGen - Sophie Layé - Phone: +33 (0)5 57 57 12 32 - email: sophie.laye@bordeaux.inra.fr
- GNS 2010 - http://www.gout-nutrition-sante.com/

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ADIT : 61846

ADIT - Jean-François Desessard - Email: jfd@adit.fr

eTech France numéro 236 (13/01/2010) - ADIT / ADIT - http://www.bulletins-electroniques.com/actualites/61846.htm