New Delhi, Aug 14
A study of population-specific responses to fermented food shows that the health effect of the bioactive peptides they contain, differ across populations and can personalise nutrition for India's diverse population, the government said on Thursday.
A recent study conducted by Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST), Guwahati, an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST) emphasises the health benefits of traditional fermented foods.
They showed that the bioactive peptides (BAPs) or short protein fragments consisting of 2 to 20 amino acids that they contain can regulate blood pressure, blood sugar, immunity and inflammation.
The study, published in Food Chemistry and led by Professor Ashis K. Mukherjee, corresponding author and Director IASST – along with Dr Maloyjo Joyraj Bhattacharjee, Dr Asis Bala, and Dr. Mojibr Khan -- showed that foods such as yogurt, idli, miso, natto, kimchi and fermented fish contain high levels of these peptides.
These short peptides, formed during fermentation, interact with biomolecules through electrostatic forces, hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interactions to exert antimicrobial, antihypertensive, antioxidant and immune-modulatory effects.