Identification of dietary modulators of cognitive ageing and brain plasticity and proof of concept of efficacy for preventing/reversing cognitive decline

With a global rise in ageing population and hence age-associated diseases, understanding how diet modifies cognitive ageing represents key revenues for prevention. Epidemiological evidence suggests inverse associations between specific dietary patterns (plant food-rich diets, i.e., Mediterranean diet) and accelerated cognitive decline and neurodegenerative diseases, which raises an important question: which plant bioactives are capable of modulating neuronal ageing? The present proposal, to be conducted at INRA Clermont-Ferrand is part of the EU-funded project (JPI-HDHL)– D-CogPlast, aiming to study associations between individual exposure to food-derived metabolites and cognitive decline, in 200 individuals with accelerated cognitive decline over 13 years against 200 control individuals (Three-cities cohort of French older subjects) using untargeted metabolomics with high-resolution mass spectrometry. Identification of the spectral signals revealed as discriminants by statistical analyses is still the bottleneck of all metabolomics studies due to the incompleteness of available databases. To facilitate annotation of metabolomics profiles for plant food bioactives and their metabolites, an in-house databank will be developed, with compilation of monoisotopic masses and other relevant spectral data. The findings from this discovery step (combination of bioactives) will be validated by targeted analysis in 400 individuals in another cohort study and the ability of the identified bioactives to modulate brain plasticity and neuronal integrity will be tested in in vitro cell culture and animal models by partner universities of the project (5 partners, 2016-2018). Inter-individual variation in bioavailability of bioactives is expected but not well characterised. It is expected that the project findings will help define prevention strategies and nutritional recommendations as well as to functional food development for a better prevention of cognitive decline.

(UNH contact C. Manach) 

http://www.healthydietforhealthylife.eu/index.php/joint-actions/nutricog