Closing the gap between fruits and vegetables breeding/genetics and their nutritional value
with Massimo Iorizzo, Ph.D.
Welcome to Science by the Slice! We're excited to host this hybrid event. We'll meet in in-person at 700 Park Offices Drive, (behind the Boxyard) to hear this month's speaker while we enjoy pizza, but space is limited. You can also join live remotely via Sigma Xi's Facebook page if you're unable to make it in person. A zoom link will also be sent out to registered attendees.
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About the talk
Today, a growing body of evidence supports the roles of phytochemicals from fruits and vegetables (F&V), in meeting nutritional requirements and preventing chronic diseases in the US. In addition, use of F&V phytochemicals as functional food ingredients (e.g. colorants, antimicrobials, nutraceuticals) appeals to consumers, and provides value-added benefits to products contributing to a surging market growth. Despite this knowledge, breeding for F&V nutritional value largely rely on selection for content of certain phytochemicals and factors contributing to their nutrigenomic properties (bioaccessibility, bioavailability and bioactivity) and processing performance have not been addressed. For example, the chemical structure of phytochemicals (a trait under genetic control) can modulate their ability to be released from the plant matrix and be absorbed, and this trait is independent from total overall phytochemical content. This talk will summarize pioneering work done by Dr. Iorizzo and collaborators that demonstrated that within the same F&V crop, variation for nutrigenomics traits exists across different cultivars and is often associated with chemical structure rather than total content. The work indicates that there is a critical need to develop a transdisciplinary approach that can enable the development of a DNA based breeding strategy to develop new F&V varieties with improved health benefits and added value.
Speaker Bio
Dr. Iorizzo is an Associate Professor and distinguished Faculty Scholar at NC State University. His research program focuses on comparative structural genomics and genetics for traits associated with enhanced quality characteristics including health properties. Crops of interest of his program include carrot, blueberry, cranberry, spinach, pineapple, and banana. Since 2010, his research has significantly contributed to establishing the largest set of omic tools for these crops, and elucidated the genetic mechanism controlling carotenoid and flavonoids accumulation. Through collaborative research, he initiated efforts to understand the relationship between genetics and nutrigenomic properties of plant bioactives like anthocyanin. This work is opening a new field of research that can contribute to closing the gap between crop breeding and genetics and their nutritional value. He is the director and co-project director of large multidisciplinary and international projects in blueberry, cranberry and carrot that are contributing to advance application of molecular breeding in these crops. His is a very active scientific writer, he has authored and co-authored 125 referred publications, and >277 non-referred publications and oral presentations.
Prior to joining NCSU, Dr. Iorizzo was a Research Scientist at University of Wisconsin-Madison. Before this, he was PhD student at the University of Naples Federico II and visiting scientist at the University of Minnesota.
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Virtual attendees:
Use the following URL to join Science by the Slice live on Facebook :
www.facebook.com/SigmaXi/
W e will also provide a zoom link to view the event to registered attendees.
Please RSVP only once. RSVP to either join in person or virtually.
We hope you'll join us remotely or in person for a great hour of science!
Science by the Slice is free and open to any interested members of the public, as well as science journalists and science communicators of all stripes. Feel free to extend this invitation to anyone who might want to attend.
Did you miss past Science by the Slice events? Check out our videos and podcasts of previous speakers: http://www.americanscientist.org/science/
Talks are co-organized with Science Communicators of North Carolina (SCONC). The RTP chapter of Sigma Xi is a co-organizer and co-sponsor, and encourages any interested scientists to get involved with the chapter and its upcoming events.
