By Dr Emilie Combet is a Lecturer in Nutrition at the University of Glasgow, and was part of the 2011 cohort of Cruciblists.
Emilie’s research is multi-disciplinary and focuses on how food (including whole foods, specific nutrients, and the way we eat) impacts on health throughout life, from the time peri-conception to old age. She has a particular interest on the “farm to fork to society” nexus, and its implications for all stakeholders, from a community, industry and clinical settings. It is a fascinating topic, since its implications are at the heart of the challenges faced by today’s modern society: ageing and chronic diseases.
Human nutrition is a body of integrated science, underpinning much of biomedical and health research, with broad implications for public health and related policies and commercial activities. The research in Human Nutrition at Glasgow always aims to inform, and change, practice and policy. Impactful research is at the core of their activity.
Some projects are industry-led, others funded by charities and governmental bodies. Most are applied, with wide public health implications.
Current activities / research themes
- Iodine and thyroid health – Iodine is key for infant brain development during pregnancy and the neonatal period. In the UK, there is no prophylaxis at the moment. Our projects investigate levels of iodine intake in the female population, in babies, to understand barriers, long-term implication of exposure to insufficient iodine, as well as possible solutions to this public health issue. We have developed and validated a short food frequency questionnaire for iodine. It is available here and validated here.
- Polyphenol intake and metabolism (inflammation, ageing, immune senescence) – Polyphenols are bioactive present in all plant foods. While their bioavailability is low, there is increasing evidence that their metabolism in the colon is implicated in their bioactivity. Polyphenol metabolites are likely to impact on the gut microbiota, and to impact the antigenic load of an individual. We study polyphenol metabolism, and its impact on lifelong health via the measurement of key biomarkers (including phenolic acids) in plasma and urine. Studies involve healthy volunteers, frail / healthy older adults, individuals at risk of colorectal cancer and colorectal cancer patients.
- Oxidative/nitrosative stress, nutrition, glycation and ageing – Dietary compounds with antioxidant activity have been studied in the context of the free radical theory of ageing. Dietary bioactives, including polyphenol and their metabolites impact on oxidative/nitrosative stress as well as glycation. However, their mode of action is complex and involves more than free radical scavenging. We are using physiologically –relevant benchtop models to model these reactions. Focussing on dietary assessment and measurement of biomarkers in cohort studies, we study the contribution of glycated molecules, ROS/RNS to inflammation, pathogenesis in the context of obesity and the ageing process.
- Food nutritional quality, reformulation – Several projects focus on food quality, from specific nutrients, bioactives (using our analytical platform) to food reformulation (and its potential / implications), improving the nutritional balance of food products. Previous and current projects have focused on coffee, seaweed, honey bee products, olive oil, fruit juices, and the nutritionally balanced pizza.
For more information on Emilie, see her webpage at the University of Glasgow.