Approved Research

The roles of diets in disease prevention and treatment and underlying molecular mechanisms

Lay summary

We tried to determine the genes behind food preference and explore the causal relationship between food preference and human diseases.

Many lines of epidemiological evidences, including long-term prospective observational studies and short-term trials of intermediate outcomes, have supported the potential causal relationships between specific dietary factors preference (eg, fruits, vegetables, processed meat, and spicy food intake) and major human diseases (ischaemic heart disease, diabetes, and mental illness). However, the mechanism of their relationship is still unclear.

To solve the puzzle, we designed a GWAS study using the UK Biobank genotype and phenotype data, to discover the risk locus of food preference and infer the casual relationship between food preference and human traits. Our result would contribute to a better tailored diet guideline for disease prevention.

The project is expected to last for two years.