Physiological responses to food

In vitro modeling allows you the evaluate the gut related health impact of foods, their components and food structures on:

• Digestion
• Bioaccessibility of nutrients
• Food related metabolites
• Gut microbiota
• Gut fermentation resulted metabolites

Digestion is modelled using INFOGEST-upper GI model:

• Validated among the laboratories enabling multicenter approaches with larger numbers of samples
• Laboratories also offer service based on their special expertise:
  • lipid (UTU), carbohydrate (VTT, UH, UEF), protein (VTT, UEF, UH, Luke), vitamin and mineral (UH) digestion

Microbiota fermentation using colon models:

• Gut microbiota fermentation
• Fermentation produced metabolites
• Can be combined with the INFOGEST upper gut model

• Produces relevant information:
  • on animal and plant based products
  • for possible in vivo studies and human interventions

In vitro cell models:

• linked with the GI modeling enables to simulate the impact on gut barrier function and/or in disease prone cell models

In vivo modelling allows you to study actual physiological responses related to the target food, food component or diet and dietary pattern either in humans or animals.

Human interventions are available for studies of acute, semi long term and long term exposures for foods, food components and diets as well as cohort studies for population based exposures. We offer possibility for multicenter studies in various populations, including populations with sensitivities, risks of diseases or actual disease. Various focus can be added in collaboration with other Platforms, such as PT1 Food processing, PT5 Sensory & consumer research, PT6 Food consumption & nutrient intake.

Human intervention can be designed to provide information on

• routine basic biomarkers to evaluate glucose and lipid metabolism, inflammation
• specific disease risk biomarkers
• basic measures on different samples such as blood, urine and feaces

• possibility for:
  • Non-invasive methods: sensors and monitoring tools (e.g. heart rate variability to assess stress and recovery), microbial metabolites from breath gases, psychophysiological testing
  • Neurosensing: EEG, ECG, skin conductivity
  • In vivo conditions: intestinal pressure, pH, temperature by ingestible probe (Smartpill ®)
  • Metabolic and body composition measures
     

Partners offer also services based on their expertise:

• UTU: human interventions combined with food analytics, cohort studies, human metabolic studies
• UH: long term interventions with special expertise in micronutrient bioavailability
• UEF: long term human interventions and meal studies with acute responses in combination with psychophysiological measures, human metabolic studies
• VTT: neurosensing approach with EEG and ECG

Approaches with specific populations groups:

• Healthy populations
• Sensitive to something populations
• Vulnerable populations including children and elderly
• Risk of disease populations
• Disease groups via collaboration with linked hospitals
• Multicentre approach enables larger recruitment

In addition, some question may need animal models to be used:

Services are available by FOODNUTRI partners at different locations by University of Eastern-Finland (UEF), Natural Research Institute (Luke), University of Helsinki (UH), University of Turku (UTU), and VTT. Contract work by service only is available for food business operators and other interested parties.