17th International Conference of FFC - 5th International Symposium of ASFFBC

Discovery, Utilization and Control of Bioactive Components and Functional Foods

November 18-19, 2014, University of San Diego, San Diego, California, USA

Along with the United States Department of Agriculture-USDA (USDA ARS), Functional Food Center is pleased to announce its 17th International Conference, "Discovery, Utilization and Control of Bioactive Components and Functional Foods". This will be held at the University of San Diego, San Diego, California, USA on November 18-19, 2014. The conference will bring together experts in medicine, biology, and the food industry to discuss the discovery,utilization and control of bioactive components and functional foods.

Main Conference Topics/Sessions:

1. Functional food ingredients and bioactive compounds: sources and potential benefits in public health
2. Functional food upgrade: delivery of bioactive compounds in every day foods and beverages
3. Turning agricultural and food byproducts into functional food ingredients
4. Dairy functional foods 
5. Diet, heart and brain health
6. The effects of bioactive compounds and functional foods on biomarkers of chronic disorders
7. Functional and medical foods with bioactive compounds for the management of chronic diseases
8. Legislation on health claims: healthy, functional and medical foods
9. Research and development of new functional food products

	Early Bird Registration Fee	Standard Rate
USDA, NIH, FDA	275	495
Full-Time Students	295	295
Registered Dietitians	395	495
Academic	495	595
Commercial	695	695
Exhibitor	1195	1195

Conference Program:

November 18, 2014

8:30-9:00   Registration 

9:00-9:05   Welcome to the University of San Diego (Kathy James, PhD)

9:05-9:25   Danik M. Martirosyan, PhD, President of Functional Food Center, Dallas, TX, USA: Conference Opening 

Session 1: Functional food ingredients and bioactive compounds: sources and potential benefits in public health (Session Chair: Bruce P. Burnett, PhD)

9:25-9:55 Pamela Starke-Reed, PhD, Deputy Administrator in the Office of National Programs, Agricultural Research Service (ARS) of United States Department of Agriculture (USDA): Functional Foods Research in the Agricultural Research Service

9:55-10:15 Gudrun Marteinsdottir, PhD, Professor, School of Engineering and Natural Sciences, University of Iceland, Iceland: Determination of Bioactive Properties of Extracts from Icelandic Edible Brown Seaweed

10:15-10:40 Lisa Dean, PhD, Market Quality and Handling Research Unit, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Raleigh, North Carolina, USA: Extracts from Peanut Skins Increase Levels of Bioactivity in Peanut Paste and Milk Chocolate

10:40-10:55 Jian Liu, PhD, Professor, School of Biotechnology and Food Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei, China: Low-dose Diet Supplement of Luteolin, a Natural Mast Cell Stabilizer, Ameliorates Diet-induced Obesity and Insulin Resistance in Mice

10:55-11:20 Ramzi Mothana, PhD, Professor, Department of Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: Plectranthus barbatus: A Source of Antiprotozoal, Antileishmanial and Antitrypanosomal Abietane Diterpenoid Compounds 

11:20-11:35 Coffee Break

Session 2: Discovery of bioactive components (Session Chair: Robert B. Beelman)

11:35-12:00 Mark Berhow, PhD, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Functional Foods Research Unit, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, IL, USA: Discovery and Bioassay of Bioactive Compounds from Camelina and Other Plants

12:00-12:25 Christina B. Wegener, PhD, Julius Kuehn Institute, Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants, Institute for Resistance Research and Stress Tolerance, Sanitz, Germany: Bioactive Compounds in Potatoes: Their Accumulation Under Drought Stress Conditions

12:25-12:55 Robert B. Beelman, PhD, Professor, Department of Food Science, Director, Center for Plant and Mushroom Foods for Health, Penn State University, University Park, State College, PA, USA: Serum Advanced Glycation End Products (sAGE) Are Reduced in Pre-Diabetics, Following a Four Month White Button Mushroom (WBM) Feeding Trial 

12:55-14:00 Lunch

Session 3: Legislation on health claims: healthy, functional and medical foods (Session Chair: Marvin Hausman, MD)

14:00-14:25 Bruce P. Burnett, PhD, Senior Director of Compliance, Medical and Regulatory Affairs, Entera Health, Inc., Cary, NC, USA: A New Regulatory Threat for Food and Nutrition Clinical Research in the United States

14:25-14:50 Sonja Brandenburger, PhD Candidate, Department of Nutrition, Food and Consumer Studies, University of Applied Sciences, Fulda, Hesse, Germany: European Health Claims for Small and Medium-Sized Companies – Utopian Dream or Future Reality?

Session 4: Functional and medical foods for the management of chronic diseases (Session Chair: Prof. Garth L. Nicolson)

14:50-15:20 Marotta Francesco, PhD, MD, Professor, ReGenera Research Group for Aging Intervention, Milan, Italy: A Novel Application of a Fermented Nutraceutical in Acute Respiratory Illnesses:  An In-vivo, Placebo-controlled, Cross-over Clinical Study in Different Age-groups of Healthy Subjects

15:20-15:35 Coffee Break

15:35-16:00 Ahmad Bassiouny, PhD, Professor, Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Alexandria University, Egypt: Up-Regulation of miR-200 and miR-122 by Synergistic Anticancer Effects of Doxorubicin with Curcumin and Resveratrol

16:00-16:30 Alexander G. Schauss, PhD, Senior Research Director and CEO, Natural and Medicinal Products Research, AIBMR Life Sciences, Inc., Puyallup, WA, USA: The Effect of UroxTM (Crateva, Horsetail and Lindera Herbal Combination) in the Treatment of Overactive Bladder and Urinary Incontinence: A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Trial in Men and Women

16:30-17:00 Marvin Hausman, MD, Entia Biosciences, Inc., Sherwood, Oregon, USA: Treatment of Anemia with a Natural Mushroom-based Medical Food ErgoD2

17:00-17:25 Garth L. Nicolson, PhD, Professor, Department of Molecular Pathology, Institute for Molecular Medicine, Huntington Beach, CA, USA: Update of the Singer-Nicolson Fluid-Mosaic Model of Membrane Structure: Its Importance in Functional Food Modification of Cellular Membranes and Function in Chronic Disease

17:25-17:30 Conference Closing

November 19, 2014

Session 5: The effects of bioactive compounds on biomarkers and delivery in every day foods and beverages (Session Chair: Kristberg Kristbergsson)

8:30-8:55 Vijaya Juturu, PhD, OmniActive Health Technologies Inc., Morristown, NJ, USA: Salacia reticulata (OHT-88) Inhibits Fat Metabolizing Enzymes and Slows Body Weight Gain: In vivo Model

8:55-9:20 Mukti Singh, PhD, Research Food Technologist, Functional Foods Research Unit, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service, (ARS), Peoria, IL, USA: Food Applications of Fiber-rich Fractions from Grains

9:20-9:50 Kristberg Kristbergsson, PhD, Professor, Department of Food Science and Nutrition, School of Health Sciences, University of Iceland, Reykjavík, Iceland: Effect of Particle Size and Gelatin Coating on the Stability of Liposome Delivery Systems for Bioactives 

Session 6: Dairy functional foods (Session Chair: Meena Somanchi)

9:50-10:15 Jette Feveile Young, PhD, Assistant Professor, Institute of Food Science, Aarhus University, Tjele, Denmark: Milk Fat Derived FFA Induces Angiopoietin-like 4 Gene Expression and Protein Secretion from Intestinal Cells

10:15-10:40 Gail Barnes, PhD, Personify LLC, Hoffman Estates, Illinois, USA: Milk and Its Bioactive Components

10:40-10:50 Coffee Break

Session 7:  Research and development of new functional food products (Session Chair: Danik Martirosyan)

10:50-11:15 Bruce P. Burnett, PhD, Senior Director of Compliance, Medical & Regulatory Affairs, Entera Health, Inc., Cary, NC, USA: Serum-Derived Bovine Immunoglobulin/Protein Isolate Provides for a Distinct Dietary Requirement as a Result of Various Enteropathies

11:15-11:45 Hiroo Toyoda, PhD, Director, R & D Division, GS Biomedical Research Institute, Tokyo, Japan: An Innovative Approach to Produce Patient-friendly Fruit by Isolated Bed Culture: Production of Cantaloupe Melon with Reduced Potassium Content

11:45-12:15 Sean Liu, PhD, Research Leader, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Functional Foods Research Unit, IL, USA: Functional Beverage Products Using Caseinate - Omega-3 Oil - Oat Beta Glucan Emulsions 

12:15-13:15 Lunch

13:15-13:40 Meena Somanchi, PhD, Nutritionist, Nutrient Data Laboratory, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Beltsville, Maryland, USA: Beverages as Functional Foods Providing Nutrients and Bioactives

13:40-14:05 Frederick C. Felker, PhD, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Functional Foods Research Unit, Peoria, IL, USA: Utilization of Functional Food Components from Pulses

14:05-14:30 Young Chul Kim, PhD, Professor, College of Pharmacy, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea: Preventive Effects of Betaine Against Diet-induced Hepatic Steatosis

Session 8: Poster Presentations

14:30-15:30 Poster Presentations

15:30-15:45 Coffee Break

15:45-17:00 Panel Discussion: Definition of Functional Foods and Bioactive Compounds 

Panelists: Marvin Hausman, MD; Bruce P. Burnett, PhD; Pamela Starke-Reed, PhD; Marotta Francesco, PhD, MD; Garth L. Nicolson, PhD, Professor; Robert B. Beelman, PhD, Professor; Mark Berhow, PhD; Sean Liu, PhD; Danik M. Martirosyan, PhD

17:00-17:15 Awards and Membership Certificates (Membership for Academic Society of Functional Foods and Bioactive Compounds)

Bioactive Compounds Discovery Award: The Functional Food Center will award two presentations: $500 for first and $100 for second place winners for the investigations in the area of bioactive compounds discovery.

Research and Development Award: The Academic Society for Functional Foods and Bioactive Compounds will award two presentations: $500 for first and $100 for second place winners for the best investigation in research and development of functional food products.  

The Academic Society also will award the book “Introduction to Functional Foods Science” to all finalists (a value of $229.00).

All prize-winning authors should be able to publish a full version of their article in the Journal of Functional Foods in Health and Disease.

17:15-17:30 Conference Closing

* Please note that the program is subject to change

Conference Organizing Committee

Co-chairman: Sean Liu, PhD, Research Leader, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), ARS, Functional Food Research Unit, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Peoria, IL, USA

Co-chairman: Danik M. Martirosyan, PhD, Founder, Academic Society for Functional Foods and Bioactive Compounds; President, Functional Food Center/Functional Food Institute; Editor-In-Chief, The Journal of Functional Foods in Health and Disease, Dallas, TX, USA

International Organizing Committee 

Hong-Sik Hwang, PhD, Research Chemist, Functional Foods Research Unit, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, USDA, ARS, Peoria, IL, USA

Sean Liu, PhD, Research Leader, USDA, ARS, Functional Food Research Unit, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Peoria, IL, USA

David J Baer, PhD, Supervisory Research Physiologist, Chief Scientist of the Functional Foods and Health Promotion Group at US Department of Agriculture’s Human Nutrition Research Center, Beltsville, MD, USA

Meena Somanchi, PhD, Nutritionist, Nutrient Data Laboratory, USDA, ARS, Beltsville, MD, USA

Hariom Yadav, PhD, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Intramural Research Program, Bethesda, MD, USA

Elizabeth Johnson, PhD, Professor, Jean Mayer US Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, Tufts University, USA

Garth L. Nicolson, PhD, Professor, President, Chief Scientific Officer and Research Professor of Molecular Pathology, The Institute for Molecular Medicine, S. Laguna Beach, CA, USA (Garth Nicolson is the world's leading authority on cellular medicine; author of more than 600 medical and scientific publications)

Kathy James, Professor of Nursing, Researcher, University of San Diego, San Diego, CA, USA

Chaowu Xiao, PhD, Bureau of Nutrition Sciences, Food Directorate, Health Product and Food Branch, Health Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Khurram Nasir, MD, Professor of Medicine, Herbert Wertheim Collge of Medicine, Florida International University; Director, Center for Prevention and Wellness Research, Baptist Health South Florida,  Miami Beach, FL, USA

Zeyuan Deng, PhD, Professor of Food Science, University of Nanchang, The State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, Nanchang University, Nanchang, China 

Sun Wenjie, MD, PhD in Epidemiology, Department of Global Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, USA

Jin-Rong Zhou, PhD, Associate Professor of Surgery, Harvard Medical School, Director, Nutrition/Metabolism Laboratory, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA

Julius Oben, PhD, Professor, Laboratory of Nutrition and Nutritional Biochemistry, Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Yaounde, Yaounde, Cameroon

Yvette Tache, PhD, Professor of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Director, CURE: Digestive Diseases Research Center - Animal Core, Co-Director, Center for Neurobiology of Stress & Women's Health, VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, LA, USA

Francesca Hansstein, PhD, Research Assistant Professor, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, Department of Public Economics and Administration, Shanghai, China

Harry W.M. Steinbusch, PhD, Professor in Cellular Neuroscience, Director MH&NS - School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Director EURON - European Graduate School for Neuroscience, Department of Translational Neuroscience, Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Maastricht University Medical Centre, Maastricht, The Netherlands

Medical and Food Industry Experts

Sybille Buchwald-Werner, PhD, Managing Director, Vital Solutions GmbH, Langenfeld, Germany

Bruce P. Burnett, PhD, Senior Director of Compliance, Medical & Regulatory Affairs Entera Health, Inc., Cary, NC, USA

Rolf Lambert, PhD, Director, Dr. Rolf Lambert Pharma-Consulting GmbH, Zürich, Switzerland

Gail Barnes, PhD, Technical Expert on Sustainability, Processing and Product Innovation, Personify LLC, Chicago, IL, USA

Local Organizing Committee

Kathy (Shadle) James, Professor of Nursing, Researcher, University of San Diego, San Diego, CA, USA

Hasmik Martirosyan, Student at University of San Diego, San Diego, CA, USA

Carmen McBride, School of Leadership & Education Science, University of San Diego, CA, USA

Venue and Accommodation

The University of San Diego:

 

The University of San Diego (USD) is a nationally ranked Roman Catholic institution with more than 800 faculty members and 7,800 undergraduate, graduate and law students.

Governed by an independent Board of Trustees, the university has six academic divisions: the College of Arts and Sciences, School of Law, the School of Business Administration, the School of Leadership and Education Sciences, the Hahn School of Nursing and Health Science and the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies. USD's values-based education offers students bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree programs.

The 180-acre campus contains buildings that encompass more than two million square feet and provide educational, administrative, residential, athletic, dining and support services.

Additional information can be found on the University website: www.sandiego.edu

San Diego's City Tour and Restaurant:

              

Hacienda Hotel:

 

You will experience the finest in traditional California hospitality at Best Western PLUS Hacienda Hotel, as well as dining, theater and sightseeing adventures.

Relax in the spacious comfort of a beautifully appointed guest room at the Best Western PLUS Hacienda Hotel, surrounded by colorful courtyards, patios, and lush landscaping. You will love the charming atmosphere, convenient location, panoramic view of the ocean, and city lights from this picturesque hillside retreat.

All of this is just footsteps away from the unique galleries, restaurants and boutiques in the neighboring historic Old Town. Old Town is known as the heart of San Diego, where California began more than 200 years ago.

Just three blocks away from the Hacienda Hotel is the Old Town trolley station on Taylor Street. The trolley links to downtown San Diego, the Gaslamp Quarter, Qualcomm Stadium, Tijuana-Mexico, Fashion Valley and the Mission Valley shopping centers.

Attendees may call the hotel at (619) 298-4707. Mention you are a part of the USD Functional Foods in Health and Disease Conference group, to reserve rooms. Reservations for the November 17-20, 2014 are available at the conference special rate of US $130 + tax per night. This rate is available now through October 17, 2014. Hotel Features: free airport shuttle, free continental breakfast and dinner, free high speed internet, pool and more.

Rate to include full El Presidente Benefits, which includes breakfast, dinner and two drink coupons per day in the Old Town Tequila Factory Restaurant & Cantina. Each additional guest in a room is $10.00. If an additional person requests the benefits, the cost is $24 per day. Rate does not include the 10.5% San Diego Transit Occupancy Tax and the 2% San Diego Tourism Marketing District Assessment Fee. The Best Western PLUS Hacienda Hotel will add a $7.00 Facility Fee per night to our daily room rate (taxes and surcharges are subject to change). Overnight parking is $14.00 per car per night.

Hotel Location: 4041 Harney St, San Diego, CA 92110

Reservation:

Reservations are due by October 17, 2014. To make reservations, guests may call the Best Western PLUS Hacienda Hotel directly at (619) 298-4707 or book online at haciendahotel. An online group booking code was prepared for our group. The password for our guest booking is FFCUSA

Visit hotel website (Not Best Western’s): haciendahotel )

• Click on Make Your Reservation (Individual, Package or Group)
• Click on Book Now! Hotel Direct Reservations
• Scroll down
• Enter dates
• Enter group code
• Check rates and complete reservation

The City of San Diego:

The most difficult aspect of planning a trip to San Diego is deciding what to do, what to see and where to go.

As California's second largest city and the United States' 8th largest, San Diego boasts a citywide population of nearly 1.3 million residents. Within its borders of 4,200 sq. miles, San Diego County encompasses 18 incorporated cities and numerous charming neighborhoods and communities, including downtown's historic Gaslamp Quarter, Little Italy, Coronado, La Jolla, Del Mar, Carlsbad, and Hillcrest, to name a few. 

San Diego is renowned for its idyllic climate, 70 miles of pristine beaches and a dazzling array of world-class family attractions. Popular attractions include SeaWorld San Diego and LEGOLAND California. Balboa Park, the largest urban cultural park in the U.S., is home to 15 museums, numerous art galleries, beautiful gardens, the Tony Award-winning The Globe Theatres and the world-famous San Diego Zoo. San Diego offers an expansive variety of things to see and do, appealing to guests of all ages from around the world. 

Additional information can be found at: www.sandiego.org

Transportation:

San Diego Bus/Trolley - San Diego Public Transportation is known for its reliability, safety and convenience. Often called San Diego's "moving landmark", the Trolley is also a fun way to get around. The Trolley serves historic Old Town, Mission Valley, Fashion Valley, Petco Park and Qualcomm Stadium, among other popular San Diego destinations.

More information regarding bus and trolley schedules as well as fare prices can be found at: www.sdmts.com/

Taxi Service – San Diego County’s taxi services are a great way to get around and see the sights without having to be in the driver's seat. Ideal for commuting from the airport, cruise ship terminal or traveling from your home or hotel room to a nearby destination, taxis are a quick and convenient way to get around town. Choose the company that best fits your needs and kick your feet up while enjoying San Diego's scenery.

Silver Cab: 619-280-5555

Orange Cab: 619-291-3333

Yellow Cab: 619-444-4444

For more information about taxi companies and rates per mile: www.sandiego.org

Car Rental – San Diego car rentals offer convenient means of transportation during your stay, or just a fun way to get around. If you decide to rent a car while in San Diego, the centrally-located airport is served by all major car rental agencies, and reservation boards with courtesy phones are located near the baggage claim areas of Terminals 1 and 2. Shuttles regularly circle in and out of the airport to car rental outposts spotted near and around the airport. Many of them are on Harbor Drive and near the Commuter Terminal.

Many car rental companies also provide convenient pick-up services at several San Diego hotels. Be sure to make reservations and arrangements ahead of time. Many hotel concierge services can also offer these services, so check with your hotel on what they can provide for you.

Enterprise Rent-A-Car: 619-696-5000 or 800-261-7331

Budget Rent-A-Car: 619-542-8686

AVIS: 619-231-7137 or 800-331-1212 

Additional information can be found at: www.sandiego.org

CONFERENCE REPORT

The 17^th International Conference of Functional Food Center (FFC) and 5^th International Symposium of Academic Society for Functional Food and Bioactive Components (ASFFBC) were both held on November 18 – 19, 2014 at University of San Diego, San Diego, California, USA. The 17^th International conference, entitled “Discovery, Utilization and Control of Bioactive Components and Functional Foods”, was jointly organized by the FFC, USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) ARS (Agricultural Research Service), and ASFFBC.

The conference brought together expertise from the realm of functional foods from all over the world. Like others, this conference was a success as we saw scientists and industry experts from about thirty countries gathered at San Diego, and participating in intriguing discussions on a variety of topics in conference sessions. The USDA deserves special mention here. They not only lent a hand in organization but also brought an excellent team of speakers with them. Among the most appriciated for active participation in the Panel Discussion Session, and for their substantive presentations, were Pamela Starke-Reed, PhD; Lisa Dean, PhD; Mark Berhow, PhD; Sean Liu, PhD; Mukti Singh, PhD; Meena Somanchi, PhD; and Frederick C. Felker, PhD. We thank the USDA for its highly professional support and hope to continue working with them in the future.

Theconference was opened by a welcome speech by Danik M. Martirosyan, PhD. Dr. Martirosyan talked about the importance of the conference and the reason to discuss discovery, utilization, and control of bioactive components and functional foods. He started his speech with the discussion of the "Functional Food Definition" according to the FFC. The FFC defines functional foods as “natural or processed foods that contain known or unknown biologically-active compounds; which, in defined amounts, provide a clinically proven and documented health benefit for the prevention, management, or treatment of chronic disease”. He mentioned that the present definition was accepted by the audience and participants at the 10th International Conference of FFC at the University of California, Santa Barbara. The definition put forward by the FFC is different compared to other definitions, accentuating bioactive compounds as the central part of functional food. There can be one or many bioactive compounds in a given functional food. Researchers are trying to find out the relationship in which they work together to be effective. Dr. Martirosyan added another important concept in the definition: the importance of the amount of bioactive compound(s) to convert an ordinary food into a functional food. Different amounts of bioactive compounds work in different situations. Sometimes too much bioactive compound in a food can be toxic. In general, a “physiologic intake range of bioactive compounds is regarded as safe. Concerning supraphysiological or pharmacological doses, safety aspects and health benefits must be documented”. Therefore, it is crucial to have a thorough discussion on the use and control of bioactive compounds and functional foods.

The conference program involved 8 inspiring sessions including 7 sessions of oral presentations and one final session of poster presentations. The session topics are as follows:

Session 1: “Functional Food Ingredients and Bioactive Compounds: Sources and Potential Benefits in Public Health” - chaired by Bruce P. Burnett, PhD.

Session 2: “Discovery of Bioactive Components” - chaired by Mark Berhow, PhD.

Session 3: “Legislation on Health Claims: Healthy, Functional and Medical Foods” - chaired by Marvin Hausman, MD.

Session 4: “Functional and Medical Foods for the Management of Chronic Diseases” - chaired by Prof. Garth L. Nicolson.

Session 5: “The Effects of Bioactive Compounds on Biomarkers and Delivery in Every Day Foods and Beverages” - chaired by Kristberg Kristbergsson.

Session 6: “Dairy Functional Foods” - chaired by Meena Somanchi.

Session 7: “Research and Development of New Functional Food Products” - chaired by Danik Martirosyan.

Session 8: Poster Presentations

Th following report shows the various presentations from the 17^th International Conference of Functional Food Center.

Pamela Starke-Reed, PhD, Deputy Administrator in the Office of National Programs, USDA, gave a talk on “Functional Foods Research in the Agricultural Research Service”. She initiated her talk on the Research, Education, and Economics divisions of the USDA, and then highlighted the ARS and its mission. She discussed some basics of functional food and ways to enhance the food, while shedding light on needed research of ‘Functional Foods”. She then discussed various goals of the National Human Nutrition Program Action Plans NP107 and NP 306. Ongoing research projects in ARS National Program were also included. She ended her discussion by mentioning an interesting DRI nomination process for updating “dietary reference intakes”. The process has been started by 10 US and Canadian staff representing the USDA, ODPHP, NIH, FDA, and Health Canada, and will do systemic reviews and evaluations of nutrients.

Lisa Dean, PhD, Market Quality and Handling Research Unit, USDA ARS, Raleigh, NC, USA presented on "Extracts from Peanut Skins Increase Levels of Bioactivity in Peanut Paste and Milk Chocolate". Lisa did a great job in testing the under-utilized peanut skins left after the blanching process of peanuts. Peanut skins are well known for their antioxidant property. Lisa’s team has already showed the anti-inflammatory effects of peanut skins in cell systems, and in this study, they have found a way to convert peanut skins into a functional food by spray drying. They also optimized the amount added to peanut paste and milk chocolate, that would increase their antioxidant power with minimal impact on flavor.

Ramzi Mothana, PhD, Professor, Department of Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia gave an interesting oral presentation on "Plectranthus barbatus: A Source of Antiprotozoal, Antileishmanial and Antitrypanosomal Abietane Diterpenoid Compounds". His research addresses a solution to major public health issues: malaria, leishmaniasis, and human African trypanosomiasis. His research group isolated ten abietane-type diterpenes from the aerial part of Plectranthus barbatus that showed antiprotozoal activity against P.falciparum, L. infantum, T. brucei and T.cruzi. His study added further evidence that medicinal plants are an important source of bioactive compounds. These natural bioactive compounds are usually more potent and have fewer side-effects than prevailing chemical drug treatments.

Mark Berhow, PhD, USDA ARS, Functional Foods Research Unit, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, IL, USA presented “Discovery and Bioassay of Bioactive Compounds from Camelina and Other Plants”. Dr. Berhow planned to redirect the potential of phytochemical and chemical components of underutilized weedy crops and byproducts from agricultural processing for more profitable and useful purposes, such as treating chronic diseases, controlling pests, etc. Along with his team, he uses mass spectrometry and NMR to determine the molecular weight, atomic composition, and chemical structure of the chromatography-separated compounds. The biological activity of the compounds is then determined by a series of bioassays or pest control evaluations. The purified bioactive components can work alone or in combination against diseases or pests.

Christina B. Wegener, PhD, Julius Kuehn Institute, Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants, Institute for Resistance Research and Stress Tolerance, Sanitz, Germany presented “Bioactive Compounds in Potatoes: Their Accumulation Under Drought Stress Conditions”. In their experiment, Dr. Wegener’s group initiated the drought stress conditions on three potato genotypes and measured antioxidant activity in tubers by the photochemiluminescent method. They also checked the amount of soluble phenols, proteins, POD, and LAH activity by UV photometer and free amino acids by liquid chromatography. The results showed that there was significant increases in the level of soluble proteins, LAH and free amino acids (especially proline). The data can be exploited to derive health benefits of potato tubers under stress.

Bruce P. Burnett, PhD, Senior Director of Compliance, Medical and Regulatory Affairs, Entera Health, Inc., Cary, NC, USA presented “A New Regulatory Threat for Food and Nutrition Clinical Research in the United States”. His presentation focused on a recent change in guidance to institutional review boards (IRBs), regarding what tested agents require an investigational new drug application (IND). This change has the potential to affect functional food or any nutritional ingredient research in humans. The new FDA guidelines require sponsors and clinical investigators to file an IND before the start of any human research on a nutritional ingredient. This occurs in the same way that investigators file for a new chemical drug, if the food or ingredient is being tested for its effect on any structure, function or marker in the body. Dr. Burnett sees this regulation as a threat to food and ingredient research in that it may inhibit new nutritional research initiatives, since IND filings are costly and time-consuming for the companies, as well as university researchers. It is not even clear if a food or complex food ingredient could qualify under an IND, since the components of the food or ingredient(s) may not be able to be completely characterized for the chemistry, manufacturing, and controls (CMC) requirements applied to new drugs, which usually only contain one or two components. This guidance has already had a chilling effect on nutrition research around the country.

Sonja Brandenburger, PhD Candidate, Department of Nutrition, Food and Consumer Studies, University of Applied Sciences, Fulda, Hesse, Germany presented research on a Nutrition and Health Claims Regulation (NHCR) entitled “European Health Claims for Small and Medium-Sized Companies – Utopian Dream or Future Reality?”. Sonja and his group analyzed the opportunities and strengths of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the European food and drink market based on the discussions held in NHCR. The analysis suggests publishing of a new European Union Register of Nutrition and Health Claims as a most promising opportunity, and the false investment followed by financial loss as the biggest threat. There is a possibility for high competition in the European food and drink market due to the health claims SMEs offer.

Marotta Francesco, PhD, MD, Professor, ReGenera Research Group for Aging Intervention, Milan, Italy presented “A Novel Application of a Fermented Nutraceutical in Acute Respiratory Illnesses:  An In-vivo, Placebo-controlled, Cross-over Clinical Study in Different Age-groups of Healthy Subjects”. Dr. Franceso reported the results of a clinical trial conducted in 90 sedentary healthy patients who were given fermented papaya preparation or placebos for a month. The results clearly showed higher salivary IgA, increased expression of phase II enzymes, and also increased expression of the most important respiratory tract antioxidant: SOD enzymes.  

Alexander G. Schauss, PhD, Senior Research Director and CEO, Natural and Medicinal Products Research, AIBMR Life Sciences, Inc., Puyallup, WA, USA gave a presentation on “The Effect of UroxTM (Crateva, Horsetail and Lindera Herbal Combination) in the Treatment of Overactive Bladder and Urinary Incontinence: A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Trial in Men and Women”. Dr. Schauss’s work addresses the problem of overactive bladder (OAB) and urinary incontinence (UI). The present statistics show that approximately 33 and 26 million Americans are affected by OAB and UI, respectively. Presently, both conditions show limited response to drugs and medical treatments available, because of adverse side effects. Herbal treatments with better efficacy and negligible side effects are available, but take a long time to show their effects. Dr. Schauss and his group designed a two month randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial to study the effect of Urox (an herbal formula) on OAB and UI. Urox showed statistically significant results; the patients get relief in as little as two weeks without any adverse events.

Marvin Hausman, MD, Entia Biosciences, Inc., Sherwood, OR, USA pointed out the importance of mushrooms in his presentation “Treatment of Anemia with a Natural Mushroom-based Medical Food ErgoD2”. Hausman’s group tested a natural mushroom based functional food ErgoD2 (formulated by Entia Biosciences) in a 4-month clinical trial consisting of twenty diabetic patients. They concluded that ErgoD2 medical food may be able to naturally redistribute iron stores by reducing iron overload in some tissues, while increasing iron availability in the blood. Their conclusion was based on the results of trial: elevated blood-iron levels, reduced TIBC, and increased percent iron saturation.

Garth L. Nicolson, PhD, Professor, Department of Molecular Pathology, Institute for Molecular Medicine, Huntington Beach, CA, USA drew our attention to the importance of dynamicity of bio-membranes in his compelling presentation “Update of the Singer-Nicolson Fluid-Mosaic Model of Membrane Structure: Its Importance in Functional Food Modification of Cellular Membranes and Function in Chronic Disease”. In this presentation, Dr. Nicolson described the Fluid Mosaic Membrane Model with a new angle, by emphasizing  various interactions occurring both within and outside the membrane. These interactions (lipid-lipid, protein-protein, lipid-protein, as well as cell-matrix, cell-cell, and cytoskeletal) are very important for maintaining the function of the cell. Dr. Nicolson further reviewed the use of the functional food NTFactor® as a lipid replacement therapy. In various studies NTFactor came out to be a safe method to correct the damage of membrane lipids, and also to alleviate the effects of anti-microbial and anti-cancer therapies.

Kristberg Kristbergsson, PhD, Professor, Department of Food Science and Nutrition, School of Health Sciences, University of Iceland, Reykjavík, Iceland presented “Effect of Particle Size and Gelatin Coating on the Stability of Liposome Delivery Systems for Bioactives”. With the goal of increasing the liposome stability during drug or food delivery process, Dr. Kristbergsson and her team used cold water fish gelatin as a coating of liposomes using the layer by layer electrostatic dispositioning method and showed it to be effective to make liposomes stable. 

Sean Liu, PhD, Research Leader, USDA ARS, Functional Foods Research Unit, IL, USA presented “Functional Beverage Products Using Caseinate - Omega-3 Oil-Oat Beta Glucan Emulsions”. Dr. Liu’s presentation addresses the issue to incorporate soluble fiber in omega-3 oil without interfering with the oil’s oxidative stability. His group formulated stable omega-3 oil with soluble dietary fiber by optimizing the concentrations of oat gum and caseinate.

After the sessions, there was a panel discussion on the definition of functional foods and bioactive compounds. The panelists were Marvin Hausman, MD; Bruce P. Burnett, PhD; Pamela Starke-Reed, PhD; Marotta Francesco, PhD, MD; Garth L. Nicolson, PhD, Professor; Robert B. Beelman, PhD, Professor; Mark Berhow, PhD; Sean Liu, PhD; and Danik M. Martirosyan, PhD. During the discussion, the NAFDAC participants from Nigeria provided an excellent theme on the definition. The definition of “functional foods”, according to Functional Food Center, Dallas, TX, USA can be seen at our home page. We accepted the present definition by a thorough discussion held on at the 11^th International Conference at University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA. From the panel discussion, we saw many schools of thoughts on the definition, so we ask that you review our definition, and send us ideas if you think it needs revision.

The conference was closed with the distribution of awards and membership certificates of the Academic Society for Functional Foods and Bioactive Compounds. We are pleased to announce that teams from the USDA, NAFDAC, Nigeria, and GS Biomedical Research Institute (Japan) were awarded the “Introduction to Functional Food Science” textbook for their excellent performance in the conference.

Overall, the 17^th International Conference of Functional Food Center was a great opportunity to meet people with a shared goal: to promote, discuss, and improve functional foods and bioactive components in terms of their sources, discovery, utilization, and control. We are confident that the conference gave you exposure through knowledgeable lectures and thought-provoking discussions, and also by interacting with experienced professionals. We hope you left the conference more informed and experienced. We believe that it is very important to continue such conferences to be progressive in the field of functional foods. By looking back at the conference discussions with the USDA and other members, our suggestion is for continued discussion on the importance of safety issues of bioactive compounds in the upcoming conferences.

We will also take this opportunity to announce our next international conference. The final dates are November 17-18, 2015, at Kobe University. Kobe University, a leading national university in Japan, will be the venue. We look forward to your participation next year in the conference, which will hold exciting presentations from research and industry leaders, and also opportunities for intense personal interaction.