Making plants with constituents that promote human health
Good nutrition can help people stay healthy longer. This requires that the plants, the basis of good nutrition, contain exactly those constituents which promote health. Researchers at Plant Research International are identifying the valuable substances among the thousands which plants contain.
Plants have been used to combat disease for thousands of years. Even today, a quarter of Western medicines originally come from plants. Plants contain thousands of substances, some of which can promote human health.
Our researchers look for substances in the plants which are known to promote health. To do so, they analyse the plants and look at the different metabolites or proteins. In order to separate out the different substances, they use various techniques: chemical analysis, chromatography or separation based on mass. The researchers have also developed new methods so that they can quickly identify a great number of substances in one go.
An example of such a valuable constituent is glucosinolate, a substance which may play a role in preventing cancer. The researchers are investigating which broccoli varieties contain a lot of this type of substance and which contain only a little. Other examples of constituents which promote health and which our researchers are working on are antioxidants and fibres. In addition, they are also looking at allergens, which can have a negative effect on health. In this case, our researchers are looking for varieties which contain small amounts of allergens or none at all.
Varieties with more good constituents
If our researchers know which varieties contain a lot of a particular substance, breeders can then breed varieties which contain even more of these good constituents. Ultimately, they want to do this in this way that contributes to foods that keep people healthier longer.
In the next step, testing the effect of substances, our researchers work together with other disciplines and other universities. For example, they test whether a substance inhibits cancer in cells with the help of bioassays, tests which enable the effect on living matter to be measured. Studies with animals are possible. For example, pigs may be given fodder containing more fibre, after which the researchers study whether the animals remain sated for longer. The most realistic research is in people. There are intervention studies in which a group of people receive a particular diet or are administered particular nutrients, after which researchers look at the effects over time. And there are epidemiological studies in which people are asked about their eating habits.