National Institute of Nutrition and Seafood Research (NIFES) is currently developing methods to detect nutrients-derived biomarkers. It is said that biomarkers are substances that can be found in tissues, blood or urine and provide information about the health and nutritional status of our body. According to NIFES this may apply to substances in food which are involved in central biochemical processes in the body, or substances that are synthesized in the human body.
Pedro Araujo, researcher at NIFES, told that it is important to develop accurate methods for the determination of marine omega-3 fatty acid biomarkers in biological samples because the marine omega-3 fatty acids present in fish, seafood, or cod liver oil are examples of biomarkers. He also said that dietary fatty acids are used by our body for building cell membranes, improving brain function, and lowering the risk of human cardiovascular diseases.
Local hormones involved in inflammatory processes such as prostaglandins can also be used as biomarkers. It is said that PGE2 and PGE3 are derived from the omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids respectively and play an important role in our immune system. Pedro Araujo told that NIFES has developed a mass spectrometry method that identifies PGE2 and PGE3 and measures their levels, within a broad concentration range.
