Bitter- and umami-related genes are differentially associated with food group intakes - the Framingham Heart Study

Authors: GERVIS, JULIE - Jean Mayer Human Nutrition Research Center On Aging At Tufts University; MA, JIANTAO - Jean Mayer Human Nutrition Research Center On Aging At Tufts University; CHUI, KENNETH - Tufts University; MCKEOWN, NICOLA - Boston University; LEVY, DANIEL - National Institutes Of Health (NIH); LICHTENSTEIN, ALICE - Jean Mayer Human Nutrition Research Center On Aging At Tufts University

Submitted to: Journal of Nutrition
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/14/2022
Publication Date: 2/1/2023
Citation: Gervis, J., Ma, J., Chui, K.K., McKeown, N.M., Levy, D., Lichtenstein, A.H. 2023. Bitter- and umami-related genes are differentially associated with food group intakes: The Framingham Heart Study. Journal of Nutrition. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tjnut.2022.11.005.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tjnut.2022.11.005

Interpretive Summary: To develop more effective methods to improve diet quality with the intent of decreasing chronic disease risk, we need to better understand the determinants of food choices. The aim of this study was to assess the relations between previously identified genes associated with taste perception (intensity with which an individual perceives each of the basic tastes; bitter, sweet, salt, sour, and umami) and food group intakes (an indicator of diet quality). Data from Framingham Heart Study participants were used for the analyses. We found that genes related to higher perception of bitter were associated with lower whole grain intake, and for umami, with lower total and red/orange vegetable intake. Given that both food groups have been identified in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans as important components of healthy dietary patterns, and intakes are lower than those recommended, knowledge gained from our findings may be useful to leverage when developing personalized nutrition guidance aimed at improving compliance with risk reduction dietary guidelines.

Technical Abstract: Background: As emphasis shifts towards using more personalized approaches to improve diet quality and reduce chronic disease risk, it has become critical to better understand the individual-level drivers of food choices. Recently, a genetic component of food choices was proposed based on variants (SNPs) in genes related to taste perception (taste-related SNPs). This study sought to determine the cumulative contribution of taste-related SNPs for the basic tastes (bitter, sweet, umami, salt, sour), summarized as "polygenic taste scores", to food group intakes among adults. Methods: Cross-sectional analyses were performed on data from 6,230 Framingham Heart Study participants (mean age +/- SD: 50 +/- 14 years; 54% female). Polygenic taste scores were derived for tastes with =2 related SNPs identified in prior GWAS, and food group intakes (servings/week) were tabulated from food frequency questionnaires. Associations were determined via linear mixed effects models, using false discovery rates and bootstrap resampling to determine statistical significance. Results: Thirty-three taste-related SNPs (9 bitter, 19 sweet, 2 umami, 2 sour, 1 salt) were identified and used to derive polygenic taste scores for bitter, sweet, umami, and sour. Per additional allele for higher bitter perception, whole grain intakes were lower by 0.17 (95% CI: -0.28, -0.06) servings/week, and for higher umami perception, total and red/orange vegetable intakes were lower by 0.73 (95% CI: -1.12, -0.34) and 0.25 (95% CI: -0.40, -0.10) servings/week, respectively. Subsequent analyses at the SNP-level identified four novel SNP-diet associations-2 bitter-related SNPs with whole grains (rs10960174 and rs6782149) and 1 umami-related SNP with total and red/orange vegetables (rs7691456)-which may have been driving the identified associations. Conclusions: Taste-related genes for bitter and umami were differentially associated with food choices that may impact diet quality. Hence, a benefit could be derived from leveraging knowledge of taste-related genes when developing personalized risk reduction dietary guidance.