An Artificial Intelligence Platform Illuminating the Connection Between Plants, Nutrition and Health

Poor diet and physical inactivity are responsible for the majority of chronic disease and associated deaths globally. Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) is a chronic metabolic condition associated with obesity and poor diet a¬ffecting over 25% of the world’s population. Currently there are limited treatment options besides dietary management and lifestyle. In looking for new approaches for NAFLD, the role of HNF4α is proving critical.

HNF4α, a transcription factor belonging to the nuclear receptor family, is best known for its role as master regulator of lipid and glucose metabolism within the liver, as well as a regulator of insulin signaling in the pancreas. Therefore it is a highly relevant target for the development of novel bioactives that may be effective in addressing NAFLD.

Plants and their secondary metabolites offer an enormous amount of undiscovered bioactives that may contain potentially therapeutic health benefits. Artificial Intelligence (AI) offers opportunities in nutrition science to identify potential compounds (“hits”) for known targets.