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POOR NUTRITION IN CHILDHOOD IS ASSOCIATED WITH BOTH SHORT- AND LONG-TERM HEALTH CONSEQUENCES AND PERSISTS AS A MAJOR PUBLIC HEALTH PROBLEM BOTH DOMESTICALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY. AGRICULTURE-BASED SOLUTIONS, SUCH AS INCREASING VITAMIN AND MINERAL CONTENT IN (BIOFORTIFICATION) OF CEREAL AND VEGETABLE CROPS CAN REPRESENT SUSTAINABLE MEANS OF IMPROVING FOOD AND NUTRITION QUALITY OF THE DIET AS WELL AS CHILD HEALTH OVERALL, OFTEN AT A LOWER COST, AND BE A PART OF A LARGER STRATEGY TO COMBAT CHILD MALNUTRITION. IN LIGHT OF THESE INTERVENTIONS' PROMISE, IT IS NECESSARY TO INCREASE THE EVIDENCE ON THEIR EFFECT ON CHILDHOOD NUTRITION STATUS, INCLUDING GUT HEALTH, TO INFORM FUTURE POLICY AND PROGRAMMING.OUR ONGOING, INDEPENDENTLY-FUNDED RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL IN VILLAGES OF MADANAPALLE, SOUTH INDIA, IN 200 6-24-MONTH-OLD CHILDREN AND THEIR MOTHERS, REPRESENTS AN EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY TO FURTHER UNDERSTAND THE EFFICACY OF BIOFORTIFIED STAPLE CROPS IN RESOURCE-LIMITED SETTINGS (FUNDED BYHARVESTPLUS/INTERNATIONAL FOOD POLICY RESEARCH INSTITUTE. ESTIMATED COMPLETION: DECEMBER 2020). THIS TRIAL WILL EXAMINE THE EFFECT OF THE DAILY PROVISION OF COMPLEMENTARY FOODS MADE FROMSWEET POTATO, WHEAT, AND PEARL MILLETCROPS BIOFORTIFIED WITH 16 TIMES THE AMOUNT OF VITAMIN A, 4 TIMES THE AMOUNT OF IRON, AND 2 TIMES THE AMOUNT OF ZINC, COMPARED TO NON-BIOFORTIFIED VARIETIES WITH RESPECT TO IMPROVING NUTRITIONAL STATUS, IMMUNE SYSTEM FUNCTIONING, AND COGNITIVE FUNCTIONING (SUCH AS LEARNING, THINKING, REASONING, ATTENTION, AND REMEMBERING), OVER 9 MONTHS OF FOLLOW-UP.WE PROPOSE TO ADD AN ASSESSMENT OF THE CHILDREN'S GUT BACTERIA (MICROBIOME) TO THE PARENT TRIAL DESIGN, WHICH IS ACOST-EFFICIENT APPROACHTO EXPLORING A COMPLEX QUESTION SUCH ASDOES A DIETARY INTERVENTION DELIVERING 50-100% OF THE ESTIMATED AVERAGE DAILY REQUIREMENT OF IRON, ZINC, AND VITAMIN A THROUGH BIOFORTIFIED CEREAL AND VEGETABLE CROPS IMPACT THE GUT MICROBIOME OVER 9 MONTHS OF CONSUMPTION?'. RECENT ADVANCES IN RESEARCH METHODS, TECHNOLOGY, AND STATISTICS PERTAINING TO THE STUDY OF THE GUT MICROBIOME PROVIDE A NEW AVENUE FOR EXPLORING THE MECHANISTIC PATHWAYS BETWEEN AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION AND HEALTH AND HOW THEY CAN BE AFFECTED BY CHANGES IN DIET.DIET AND HOST NUTRITIONAL STATUS ARE IN A DELICATE BALANCE WITH THE GUT MICROBIAL COMPOSITION AND FUNCTIONAL CAPACITY. APART FROM MODIFYING THE COMPOSITION OF THE BACTERIA, FUNGI, AND VIRUSES RESIDING IN THE HUMAN GUT, DIET AND NUTRITIONAL STATUS ALSO PROVIDE SUBSTRATE TO THESE MICROORGANISMS AND CONSEQUENTLY INFLUENCE THEIR FUNCTION. IN CHILDREN, PARTICULARLY EARLY IN LIFE, CRITICAL FUNCTIONS SUCH AS IMMUNE AND COGNITIVE CAPACITY ARE IN GREATEST FLUX AND HIGHLY SENSITIVE TO EXTERNAL INPUTS SUCH AS NUTRITION. PREVIOUS STUDIES HAVE EXPLORED THE IMPACT OF DIETARY INTERVENTIONS ON THE GUT MICROBIOME AMONG ADULTS. HOWEVER, A STUDY FOCUSED ON THE IMPACTOFCONSUMING BIOFORTIFIED CROPSAND NUTRITIONAL STATUS ON THE GUT MICROBIAL COMPOSITION, DIVERSITY, AND FUNCTION, LONGITUDINALLY ACROSS THE FIRST FEW YEARS OF INFANCY AND CHILDHOOD, WHICH IS A PERIOD OF RAPID GROWTH AND HIGHER SUSCEPTIBILITY TO DISEASE, IS LACKING.WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF AN ALREADY-FUNDED RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL, WE HAVEA UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO ANSWER SOME OF THE YET INCOMPLETELY UNDERSTOOD QUESTIONS IN THIS AREA OF RESEARCH:TO INCREASE OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE LINKS BETWEEN AGRICULTURAL, NUTRITIONAL, AND DIETARY INPUTS AND THE GUT MICROBIOME IN EARLY LIFE, AND HELP IDENTIFY CRITICAL WINDOWS FOR INTERVENTION TO IMPROVE CHILD HEALTH IN THE UNITED STATES AS WELL AS GLOBALLY.WE HYPOTHESIZETHAT THE COMPOSITION AND FUNCTION OF THE GUT MICROBIOME WILL BE AFFECTED BY THE DIETARY INTERVENTION AND ASSOCIATED WITH THE IMMUNE RESPONSE.THIS PROPOSAL, IN RESPONSE TO THE PRIORITY FOOD SAFETY, NUTRITION, AND HEALTHWILL ADDRESS THECHALLENGES OF A GROWING POPULATIONUSING BIOFORTIFIED CROPS, WHICH REPRESENT A SUSTAINABLE SOLUTION FOR IMPROVING MICRONUTRIENT DEFICIENCY AND OVERALL NUTRITION STATUS, INCLUDINGHUMAN FOOD, FIBER,AND MICRONUTRIENTNEEDS. IN TERMS OFSUSTAINABILITY,BIOFORTIFIED CROPS CAN BE GROWN BY LOCAL FARMERS,SUSTAINING THE ECONOMIC VIABILITY OF FARM OPERATIONS. FURTHER, BIOFORTIFIED CROPS TOLERATE EXTREME CLIMATE CONDITIONS WELL, HAVING BEEN TESTED FOR THESE ATTRIBUTES, MAKING THEM HARDY CROPS FOR INCREASINGLY CLIMATE-AFFECTED DRIER REGIONS.××

$499,981FY2021National Institute of Food and AgricultureUSDA

Cornell University, Ithaca NY

Investigators

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POOR NUTRITION IN CHILDHOOD IS ASSOCIATED WITH BOTH SHORT- AND LONG-TERM HEALTH CONSEQUENCES AND PERSISTS AS A MAJOR PUBLIC HEALTH PROBLEM BOTH DOMESTICALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY. AGRICULTURE-BASED SOLUTIONS, SUCH AS INCREASING VITAMIN AND MINERAL CONTENT IN (BIOFORTIFICATION) OF CEREAL AND VEGETABLE CROPS CAN REPRESENT SUSTAINABLE MEANS OF IMPROVING FOOD AND NUTRITION QUALITY OF THE DIET AS WELL AS CHILD HEALTH OVERALL, OFTEN AT A LOWER COST, AND BE A PART OF A LARGER STRATEGY TO COMBAT CHILD MALNUTRITION. IN LIGHT OF THESE INTERVENTIONS' PROMISE, IT IS NECESSARY TO INCREASE THE EVIDENCE ON THEIR EFFECT ON CHILDHOOD NUTRITION STATUS, INCLUDING GUT HEALTH, TO INFORM FUTURE POLICY AND PROGRAMMING.OUR ONGOING, INDEPENDENTLY-FUNDED RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL IN VILLAGES OF MADANAPALLE, SOUTH INDIA, IN 200 6-24-MONTH-OLD CHILDREN AND THEIR MOTHERS, REPRESENTS AN EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY TO FURTHER UNDERSTAND THE EFFICACY OF BIOFORTIFIED STAPLE CROPS IN RESOURCE-LIMITED SETTINGS (FUNDED BYHARVESTPLUS/INTERNATIONAL FOOD POLICY RESEARCH INSTITUTE. ESTIMATED COMPLETION: DECEMBER 2020). THIS TRIAL WILL EXAMINE THE EFFECT OF THE DAILY PROVISION OF COMPLEMENTARY FOODS MADE FROMSWEET POTATO, WHEAT, AND PEARL MILLETCROPS BIOFORTIFIED WITH 16 TIMES THE AMOUNT OF VITAMIN A, 4 TIMES THE AMOUNT OF IRON, AND 2 TIMES THE AMOUNT OF ZINC, COMPARED TO NON-BIOFORTIFIED VARIETIES WITH RESPECT TO IMPROVING NUTRITIONAL STATUS, IMMUNE SYSTEM FUNCTIONING, AND COGNITIVE FUNCTIONING (SUCH AS LEARNING, THINKING, REASONING, ATTENTION, AND REMEMBERING), OVER 9 MONTHS OF FOLLOW-UP.WE PROPOSE TO ADD AN ASSESSMENT OF THE CHILDREN'S GUT BACTERIA (MICROBIOME) TO THE PARENT TRIAL DESIGN, WHICH IS ACOST-EFFICIENT APPROACHTO EXPLORING A COMPLEX QUESTION SUCH ASDOES A DIETARY INTERVENTION DELIVERING 50-100% OF THE ESTIMATED AVERAGE DAILY REQUIREMENT OF IRON, ZINC, AND VITAMIN A THROUGH BIOFORTIFIED CEREAL AND VEGETABLE CROPS IMPACT THE GUT MICROBIOME OVER 9 MONTHS OF CONSUMPTION?'. RECENT ADVANCES IN RESEARCH METHODS, TECHNOLOGY, AND STATISTICS PERTAINING TO THE STUDY OF THE GUT MICROBIOME PROVIDE A NEW AVENUE FOR EXPLORING THE MECHANISTIC PATHWAYS BETWEEN AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION AND HEALTH AND HOW THEY CAN BE AFFECTED BY CHANGES IN DIET.DIET AND HOST NUTRITIONAL STATUS ARE IN A DELICATE BALANCE WITH THE GUT MICROBIAL COMPOSITION AND FUNCTIONAL CAPACITY. APART FROM MODIFYING THE COMPOSITION OF THE BACTERIA, FUNGI, AND VIRUSES RESIDING IN THE HUMAN GUT, DIET AND NUTRITIONAL STATUS ALSO PROVIDE SUBSTRATE TO THESE MICROORGANISMS AND CONSEQUENTLY INFLUENCE THEIR FUNCTION. IN CHILDREN, PARTICULARLY EARLY IN LIFE, CRITICAL FUNCTIONS SUCH AS IMMUNE AND COGNITIVE CAPACITY ARE IN GREATEST FLUX AND HIGHLY SENSITIVE TO EXTERNAL INPUTS SUCH AS NUTRITION. PREVIOUS STUDIES HAVE EXPLORED THE IMPACT OF DIETARY INTERVENTIONS ON THE GUT MICROBIOME AMONG ADULTS. HOWEVER, A STUDY FOCUSED ON THE IMPACTOFCONSUMING BIOFORTIFIED CROPSAND NUTRITIONAL STATUS ON THE GUT MICROBIAL COMPOSITION, DIVERSITY, AND FUNCTION, LONGITUDINALLY ACROSS THE FIRST FEW YEARS OF INFANCY AND CHILDHOOD, WHICH IS A PERIOD OF RAPID GROWTH AND HIGHER SUSCEPTIBILITY TO DISEASE, IS LACKING.WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF AN ALREADY-FUNDED RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL, WE HAVEA UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO ANSWER SOME OF THE YET INCOMPLETELY UNDERSTOOD QUESTIONS IN THIS AREA OF RESEARCH:TO INCREASE OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE LINKS BETWEEN AGRICULTURAL, NUTRITIONAL, AND DIETARY INPUTS AND THE GUT MICROBIOME IN EARLY LIFE, AND HELP IDENTIFY CRITICAL WINDOWS FOR INTERVENTION TO IMPROVE CHILD HEALTH IN THE UNITED STATES AS WELL AS GLOBALLY.WE HYPOTHESIZETHAT THE COMPOSITION AND FUNCTION OF THE GUT MICROBIOME WILL BE AFFECTED BY THE DIETARY INTERVENTION AND ASSOCIATED WITH THE IMMUNE RESPONSE.THIS PROPOSAL, IN RESPONSE TO THE PRIORITY FOOD SAFETY, NUTRITION, AND HEALTHWILL ADDRESS THECHALLENGES OF A GROWING POPULATIONUSING BIOFORTIFIED CROPS, WHICH REPRESENT A SUSTAINABLE SOLUTION FOR IMPROVING MICRONUTRIENT DEFICIENCY AND OVERALL NUTRITION STATUS, INCLUDINGHUMAN FOOD, FIBER,AND MICRONUTRIENTNEEDS. IN TERMS OFSUSTAINABILITY,BIOFORTIFIED CROPS CAN BE GROWN BY LOCAL FARMERS,SUSTAINING THE ECONOMIC VIABILITY OF FARM OPERATIONS. FURTHER, BIOFORTIFIED CROPS TOLERATE EXTREME CLIMATE CONDITIONS WELL, HAVING BEEN TESTED FOR THESE ATTRIBUTES, MAKING THEM HARDY CROPS FOR INCREASINGLY CLIMATE-AFFECTED DRIER REGIONS.×× · GrantIndex