Abstract

RAMON VIDAL, Daniel. Food biotechnology: from genetically modified foods to personalized nutrition. Nutr. Hosp. [online]. 2018, vol.35, n.spe4, pp.28-32.  Epub Sep 28, 2020. ISSN 1699-5198.  https://dx.doi.org/10.20960/nh.2121.

Food biotechnology is a weapon of millenary improvement in the agri-food sector. Most of our foods have been improved using biotechnological tools, although many times we do not know it. The latest generation of this update are the so-called genetically modified foods that are subject to great social controversy, mainly in the European Union. At present, its use implies a lower environmental impact and a greater income for the farmer, for what most probably they will prevail. Still, it is not the only possibility of using biotechnology in the agri-food sector.

In this sense, the use of genomics opens up exciting possibilities. The sequencing of genomes is allowed in the knowledge of the raw materials of foods. But in addition, genomics is studying the microorganisms present in the human body. Those that populate the digestive tract, the so-called gut microbiome, is very important for our diet. We are beginning to understand their role in health and disease. This opens possibilities of nutritional intervention with probiotics and prebiotics that largely mark the future of food and health.

Keywords : Food biotechnology; Genetically modified food; Gut microbiome; Probiotics.

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