Integrated omics for applying in food and nutrition sciences

The significance of combining different omics in nutrition will be discussed in today's talk. Habitual coffee consumption reduces the risk of obesity and diabetes. To explore the mechanism, mice were fed a high-fat diet and the effect of adding coffee powder was examined. Coffee powder suppressed weight gain and fat accumulation. The results of transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics showed that coffee consumption suppressed the transcription factor PPARg and its downstream factors, and activated the TCA cycle and the urea cycle. The latter suggested that ATP consumption was promoted by coffee. On the other hand, we searched for loci that correlated with the frequency of coffee consumption in the Japanese population. Genome-wide association analysis revealed a locus strongly associated with coffee intake frequency at position 12q24. In general, proteins that are digested and absorbed well are regarded nutritionally superior. On the other hand, proteins that are not digested and absorbed well (resistant proteins) are known to have positive effects on the intestinal tract and others. We found that eggshell membrane (ESM), a resistant protein, had an ameliorative effect in both the DSS-induced and IL-10 knockout mouse models of inflammatory colitis. Metagenomics revealed that it ameliorates dysbiosis associated with colitis. Transcriptomics results showed that ESMs are effective in reducing colonic inflammation and maintaining intestinal integrity. Transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics showed metabolic ameliorating effects of ESM. These results indicate that the integration of omics can provide very useful and broad information in food and nutrition research.