Chapter 3 - Epigenetic modulation of nutritional factors with reference to microgravity conditions for plants and animals: a new biotechnological approach for developing functional foods

Abstract

The quality of foods that are produced is determined by environmental factors, such as soil quality, water content, microgravity, radiation, temperature, humidity, and harvesting time, which influence inheritance. In a recent biotechnological advancement, microgravity conditions have been demonstrated to have significant influence on the nutrient quality of foods. Use of microgravity conditions during germination of seeds can alter the nutrient quality or contents, leading to improvement in the quality of food production. The majority of these biotechnological and traditional methods act by influencing the epigenome. The epigenome is the surface of the genes made up of chemical compounds and proteins that can attach to DNA and direct such actions as turning the genes on or off, thereby controlling the production of proteins in particular cells. In many species of plants and animals, new phenotypes have been observed to occur rapidly in the last 100 years, owing to the rapid changes in the environment, causing epigenetic inheritance of a phenotype. Therefore genetic variations and epigenetic modulations in the plant cells appear to be the basic determinants of the nutrient contents of the fruits, leaves, and seeds of the plants consumed as foods. Hence these modulations may be useful for the development of functional foods. Similarly, the nutrient content of animal foods can be altered by feeding the mother or father for epigenetic variations and modulations that are being targeted for inclusion in foods in the functional food category. This comprehensive review further emphasizes the hypothesis previously proposed by R.B. Singh and provides additional information on the role of biotechnology and new epigenetic engineering techniques in the production of functional foods for human consumption from plants and animals for global functional food security.