The Request for Information (RFI) is to help prioritize “well-designed dietary intervention trials to investigate nutrigenetics (or the relationship between genotype and diet-related disease) as a determinant of the response to bioactive food components and to evaluate their utility as biomarkers for predicting risk and/or tumor behavior,” according to a statement issued by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Cancer Institute (NCI).
Diet-sensitive
The research group is particularly interested in studying: Diet-sensitive genetic modifications that warrant further focus for potential intervention studies, nutrient, bioactive food components from foods or supplements, specific cancer process related genes with molecular targets that are diet-sensitive and critical issues that are limiting investigation.
It has invited responses from: Academics, small businesses, pharmaceutical/biotechnology companies, health care professionals, patient advocacy groups and Federal and State Government.
Responses should be directed to Nancy Emenaker, program director, Nutritional Science Research Group (emenaken@mail.nih.gov) and should arrive by April 15, 2011.
Meanwhile, the statement recognized “…increasing evidence points to diet as a modifier of cancer risk and tumor behavior. Numerous bioactive food components may be involved in bringing about these responses.”
Predictive insights
But the literature is filled with many inconsistencies, it pointed out. “Genetic variants involved with absorption, metabolism and/or excretion of specific food components and their associated molecular targets may provide valuable predictive insights into human response to foods and dietary supplements.”
The scientific literature suggests incorporating information on genetic variations involved with absorption, metabolism and/or excretion processes may help to predict which individuals are likely to benefit most by dietary modification.
The NCI said that it did not intend to make any awards based on responses to this RFI or to otherwise pay for the preparation of any information submitted or for the Government's use of such information.