Role of lipid structure and physical properties in digestive processes impacting nutrition

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Dietary lipids play important roles in health and disease. However, we are unable to adequately define the underlying relationships. Also, although lipids must be solubilized in the gastrointestinal tract before they can be absorbed, not enough is known about the biochemical and biophysical processes of lipid digestion. In particular, the role of lipid structure and physical properties in determining the metabolic effect of foods is rarely considered. This lack of understanding hampers our ability to design foods and natural health products that optimize lipid absorption. For example, it would be desirable to increase the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins and nutraceuticals or to minimize the absorption of fatty acids that promote cardiovascular disease risk and obesity. The potential to tailor lipid digestion to trigger satiety mechanisms, i.e. a strategy to minimize food intake to help combat the burgeoning incidences of overweight and obesity, is also exciting. This research aims to define the role of lipid structure and physical properties on pre-absorptive digestive events that impact lipid absorption and satiety. Using in vitro models of digestion and complementary chemical and physical analyses, lipid digestion dynamics will be studied in relation to lipid structure and crystallinity, digestibility and nutraceutical solubilization. The relationship between lipid structure and satiety will also be explored using an animal model. This work also advances methods in the field by seeking correlations between in vitro and in vivo models. Long-term, it will enable a better understanding of lipid structure-function relationships at the level of digestion to support the development of commercial products that optimize nutritional outcomes through food structuring approaches. This knowledge will support the development of evidence-based food and natural health products. The research also allows for the training of several undergraduate and graduate students on projects at the food-nutrition interface.