An ongoing research collaboration between the Washington State University Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine’s Department of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology (NEP) and the College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences (CAHNRS) is bearing fruit.
The Soil to Society project takes a comprehensive approach to improving food systems, nutrition, and human health. Funded by a five-year $10 million grant from the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, the project includes six teams of WSU researchers and collaborators across the country, taking a multidisciplinary approach to the challenge of sustainably and nutritiously feeding the country.
At WSU, CAHNRS researchers are developing strategies to increase the production and nutrient content of six major American crops—wheat, barley, peas, lentils, buckwheat, and quinoa—and create products to bring them to market.
To date, the researchers have created a new variety of buckwheat that thrives in western Washington and introduced it to school cafeteria menus, bred new lines of quinoa to create high-protein cookies, and experimented with whole-grain pancakes, among other innovations.
Meanwhile, NEP researchers are investigating how these foods affect individual and population health and exploring ways to increase their consumption. Several teams are studying the nutritional content of these crops and their impact on the body, including benefits for the gut microbiome and metabolic health.
Quinoa Cookies and the Microbiome Under the Microscope
One research team reviewed how different cooking methods affect the nutritional quality of quinoa and then tested its effects on gut health in the lab.
“The gut microbiome can be used as a proxy to rapidly evaluate and confirm the potential health benefits of crops,” explained corresponding author Associate Professor Franck Carbonero, PhD. “Biofortification improves the nutritional value in crops through traditional breeding, in particular increasing and diversifying nutrient compounds such as fibers and polyphenols. The gut microbiome directly metabolizes those molecules, mediating their health benefits.”
Carbonero’s team used in vitro fermentation to mimic a human gut microbiome in a controlled setting and test how a select line of quinoa cooked various ways was metabolized. The results of their study, published in Current Developments in Nutrition, showed that quinoa boosts the production of beneficial gut bacteria across cooking methods, although boiling optimized the effect.
“Our results indicate a remarkable prebiotic effect from quinoa, whether it was boiled, baked, or extruded,” Carbonero said.
Metabolic Might of Gut Health and Mitochondrial Function
In collaboration with the Carbonero lab, a team led by Associate Professor Patrick Solverson, PhD, is uncovering how digested quinoa impacts energy metabolism at the cellular level, which could lead to new insights into blood sugar regulation as well as metabolic and overall health. Metabolic health refers to how efficiently the body processes food and regulates energy, and includes indicators such as blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol.
Using samples from Carbonero’s in vitro fermentation experiments, the team is examining how bioactive compounds released during digestion influence mitochondrial function, a key aspect of many metabolic disorders such as diabetes and rare genetic disorders. The team uses the samples to treat C2C12 muscle cells, a model for metabolically active tissue, and then measures the cells’ oxygen consumption rate and mitochondrial content. This dual approach reveals not only how much energy cells produce but also whether that energy is generated efficiently.
“Early results show that metabolites produced by Bifidobacterium, a beneficial gut microbe, can significantly improve mitochondrial efficiency in healthy cells,” said Scientific Assistant Christy Teets. “These findings suggest that gut microbes and diet may work together to shape cellular energy metabolism, paving the way for targeted nutritional strategies to support metabolic health.”
Barley Breakfasts and Blood Sugar Regulation
Quinoa isn’t the only biofortified crop to show positive health impacts. A third team lead by Assistant Professor Martine Perrigue, PhD, RDN, CD, and Professor Pablo Monsivais, PhD, MPH, investigated the glycemic health benefits of different varieties of barley, including WSU-created varieties Meg’s Song and Havener barley. Both were bred to have a high concentration of beta-glucan, a naturally occurring fiber with multiple potential health benefits.
Published in the journal Nutrients, results of the clinical trial demonstrated that the high beta-glucan varieties significantly reduced participants’ blood glucose levels after meals, especially in unsweetened preparations. The findings suggest that the varieties may be a valuable dietary tool for regulating blood sugar, supporting efforts to prevent or manage conditions like prediabetes and type 2 diabetes.
Consumption Trends Across the Country
Now that researchers have identified health benefits of WSU’s fortified crop varieties, the next challenge is getting products on shelves and in grocery carts.
Currently, dietary intake of fiber-rich crops like barley, buckwheat, and quinoa in the U.S. is extremely low. Only about 0.4% of the U.S. population consumes barley on any given day, and buckwheat consumption is even lower, according to a study by Monsivais and Assistant Professor Namrata Sanjeevi, PhD. Their analysis was based on data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which provides detailed information on the American diet.
“This was disappointing but not surprising, given that American diets generally lean hard on refined grains, primarily wheat-, rice-, and corn-based products, rather than whole grain foods,” Monsivais said. “Price might be one challenge for consumers. We found that although barley was cheap, the prices per serving for buckwheat and quinoa were at least three times that for rice. We’re in the process of investigating potential barriers—such as cost, availability, and convenience—so we can inform efforts to increase the intake of more nutritional foods.”
Marketing new crop varieties using their now empirically substantiated health benefits could be one way to increase intake, researchers across the department note. With time, improvements in individual health could translate into gains in population health. This cross-college collaboration is poised to bring transformative changes to the plates and people of Washington and beyond.