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What is mechanistic nutriomics?

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What is Mechanistic Nutriomics? 

By John Schloss 

Here is a definition:    

Mechanistic nutriomics: understanding the ‘how’ behind nutrition. 

In essence, mechanistic nutriomics bridges the gap between simply observing that diet affects health and understanding the precise molecular machinery and cellular responses that drive these effects, paving the way for a new era of personalized and preventative nutritional approaches. 

 

As a youth in DuPont’s Central Research Department in 1981, my research focus was on mechanistic enzymology and drug design (1,2). During this time, I was able to conceive of, synthesize, evaluate (in vitro), and participate in field testing new biocides (e.g., herbicides and antibiotics) for their ‘real-world’ performance (3,4). New paradigms for drug mechanisms and biocide pathophysiology resulted from correlation of these data. By a combination of chemical (selective inhibitors) and genetic techniques a quantitative assessment of the pathophysiology associated with each step in a biochemical pathway became possible (5). Molecular explanations for inhibition processes led to greater understanding of the role that oxygen toxicity played in the pathophysiology of bacteria, plants, and humans (6,7). For any drug or biocide to work as expected, the underlying genetics and nutrition supporting the site of action must be known. From the standpoint of drug efficacy, a detailed knowledge of the pathophysiology and mechanism by which the drug works at the molecular level is essential.  

In the late 1980s, I had the good fortune to meet William (Bill) Shive at the University of Texas-Austin, shortly after he had developed a novel, cell-based method for assessing individual dietary and genetic nutritional defects (8,9). With this method it was possible to determine dietary needs that distinguish one individual from another. The primary advantage of Bill Shive’s method was its ability to make a wholistic assessment of anyone’s nutritional status, independent of the underlying cause for any nutritional deficiency (genetic, dietary, drug-induced, stress-related, or connected to other aspects of lifestyle). Beginning in the early 1990’s, after moving to academics as a professor at the University of Kansas, I began to teach pharmacy students about Bill Shive’s method for individualized nutritional assessment, while maintaining contact with him to keep abreast of new developments in this area.  

Later, while helping to start a new pharmacy program at Marshall University (2011-2015), I attended a lecture by W. Elaine Hardman. In this lecture she presented data demonstrating the effect of dietary walnuts in suppressing the incidence and growth rate of breast, prostate, colon, and renal cancers in mice (10). Compared to corn oil, which has a much higher concentration of omega-6 fatty acids and a much lower concentration of omega-3 fatty acids, walnuts greatly retard the incidence and growth rates of cancer. The higher omega-3 fatty acid content of walnuts, relative to corn oil, contributes to their benefit. However, other essential dietary nutrients in walnuts have additive or synergistic anticancer effects beyond the favorable omega-3/omega-6 ratio. More recent pilot clinical studies have extended these results to the benefit of including walnuts in the diets of breast cancer patients (11).  

Mechanistic nutriomics has become one of my major research interests. The journal Inflammopharmacology published a paper on the relationship between stress-induced nutritional deficiencies and the related risk of Alzheimer’s this week (Schloss 2025). Inflammopharmacology also published an earlier paper describing the link between stress-induced nutritional deficiencies and risk of infectious disease, specifically COVID (Schloss 2023). Both papers are available by using the link provided.  

 

Schloss JV. Is dolichol pathway dysfunction a significant factor in Alzheimer’s disease? Inflammopharmacology. July 25, 2025; in press. 

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10787-025-01868-x     

Schloss JV. Nutritional deficiencies that may predispose to long COVID. Inflammopharmacology. 2023; 31:573–583.  

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10787-023-01183-3  

 

References 

 

  1. Schloss JV (1989) Modern aspects of enzyme inhibition with particular emphasis on reaction- intermediate analogs and other potent, reversible inhibitors, in Target Sites of Herbicide Action, eds. P. Böger & G. Sandmann, CRC Press, Inc., Boca Raton, 165-245.  
  2. Schloss JV (1988) Significance of slow-binding enzyme inhibition and its relationship to reaction-intermediate analogues. Accounts Chem Res 21:348-353. https://doi.org/10.1021/ar00153a005  
  3. Aulabaugh A, Schloss JV (1990) Oxalyl hydroxamates as reaction-intermediate analogues for ketol-acid reductoisomerase. Biochemistry 29:2824-2830. https://doi.org/10.1021/bi00463a027   
  4. Wittenbach VA, Teaney PW, Hanna WS, Rayner DR, Schloss JV (1994) Herbicidal activity of an isopropylmalate dehydrogenase inhibitor. Plant Physiol 106:321-328. https://doi.org/10.1104/pp.106.1.321   
  5. Schloss JV, Aulabaugh A (1990) Acetolactate synthase and ketol-acid reductoisomerase: targets for herbicides obtained by screening and de novo design. Z Naturforsch 45c:544-551. https://doi.org/10.1515/znc-1990-0542   
  6. Schloss JV, Ciskanik LM, Van Dyk DE (1988) Origin of the herbicide binding site of acetolactate synthase. Nature 331:360-362. https://doi.org/10.1038/331360a0  
  7. Schloss JV (2002) Oxygen toxicity from plants to people. Planta 216:38-43. https://doi.org/1007/s00425-002-0905-3
  8. Shive W, Pinkerton F, Humphreys J, Johnson MM, Hamilton WG, Matthews KS (1986) Development of a chemically defined serum- and protein-free medium for growth of human peripheral lymphocytes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 83(1):9-13. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.83.1.9
  9. Shive W, Matthews KS (1988) Nutritional requirements for growth of human lymphocytes. Annu Rev Nutr 8:81-97. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.nu.08.070188.000501
  10. Hardman WE (2014) Walnuts have potential for cancer prevention and treatment in mice. J Nutr 144(4 Suppl):555S-560S. https://doi.org/10.3945/jn.113.188466
  11. Hardman WE, Primerano DA, Legenza MT, Morgan J, Fan J, Denvir J (2019) Dietary walnut altered gene expressions related to tumor growth, survival, and metastasis in breast cancer patients: a pilot clinical trial. Nutr Res 66:82-94. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nutres.2019.03.004