In Vitro Studies on Palm Phytonutrients: A Nutrigenomic Review

This review discussed the nutrigenomics aspects of palm phytonutrients. Nutrigenomic is the study of the effect of nutrient intake in a specific diet on the regulation of gene expression. Nutrigenomic studies are done to develop personalised dietary, supplements and medicinal products. This can be achieved by either experimenting via in vitro, in vivo or clinical trials. However, researchers prefer to conduct in vitro studies as the data can be obtained faster than other modes of studies, primarily to assess dietary supplement safety. In vitro studies are performed outside of a living organism but in a controlled environment. Phytonutrients are natural chemicals that can be found in plant foods. Palm oil is one of the richest sources of phytonutrients. Palm oil phytonutrients include palm phenolic-enriched fraction (PEF), oil palm phenolics (OPP), and tocotrienol-rich fraction (TRF). These phytonutrients are used as health supplements and were proven to have nutritional benefits for consumers. In this review, we will discuss the nutrigenomics aspects of palm phytonutrients effect on cell proliferation, apoptosis and insulin resistance pathway, based on in vitro data published from 2010.(author)