The study of interaction of dietary components with the genome and the resulting change in gene expression.
The explosion of molecular biology techniques and the elucidation of the human genome are fueling a revolution in a variety of sciences including nutrition. Nutrigenomics is research focusing on identifying and understanding molecular-level interaction between nutrients and other dietary bioactives with the genome. By understanding how nutrients interact with the genome, better dietary regimens may be designed or novel treatment of important diseases may be addressed. Nutrigenomics utilizes such tools and approaches as microarrays and genomics, proteomics, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and bioinformatics to improve diet and health.
We at the Center of Excellence in Nutrigenomics (CEN) are striving to be the focal point of molecular nutrition studies being performed on campus. The Center will be a conduit to the Huck Institute of the Life Sciences and their genomics initiatives as well as the General Clinical Research Center and their expertise in human nutrition studies. Thus, PSU Nutrigenomics can fulfill our goal to understand nutrition "from the table to the gene and back again"
