Speaker: Dr Alejandro Sánchez-Flores, Biotechnology Institute, National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), will present a seminar entitled: Integrative ‘omics in food technology and nutrigenomics

Host: Andrew Page

Abstract:
The revolution of DNA Sequencing technologies, has had a great impact in different research areas like food technology and the rise of new ones, such as nutrigenomics. Improvements in metagenomics, have allowed the study of biological systems such as bacterial populations involved in food fermentation processes or microbiomes associated to different multicellular organisms. We have used a whole metagenome sequencing approach using to characterise a very complex microbiota associated fermentation and ripening of the Mexican Cotija cheese, where we studied among other things, the mechanisms behind the safety of a raw milk fermented artisanal product. Fermented and other food products, can alter intestinal microbiota of different organisms but also depending on certain components, can change the expression patter of many genes.

Currently, we are studying the effect of food products in different livestock animals such as fish, poultry and swine, by studying their intestinal microbiome, differential expression profiles or both. However, the integration of the information related to microbiome, expression changes and production parameters, remains a challenge that we are currently tackling by using and developing new Bioinformatics approaches.

All staff from organisations on the Norwich Research Park are welcome to attend.