Evidence mapPaperPMID 41752200Full record

ReviewInternational journal of molecular sciences2026

Functional Foods as Modulators of Epigenetic Mechanisms Affecting Metabolic Health in Adolescence.

Natalia Kurhaluk, Renata Kołodziejska, Zbigniew Mazur, Oleksandr Lukash, Oleksandr Yakovenko, Halina Tkaczenko

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in International journal of molecular sciences, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
  3. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Natalia KurhalukInstitute of Biology, Pomeranian University in Słupsk, Arciszewski St. 22B, 76-200 Słupsk, Poland.ORCID 0000-0002-4669-1092
Renata KołodziejskaDepartment of Medical Biology and Biochemistry, Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, M. Karłowicz St. 24, 85-092 Bydgoszcz, Poland.ORCID 0000-0002-7277-721X
Zbigniew MazurInstitute of Biology, Pomeranian University in Słupsk, Arciszewski St. 22B, 76-200 Słupsk, Poland.
Oleksandr LukashDepartment of Ecology, Geography and Nature Management, T.H. Shevchenko National University "Chernihiv Colehium", 53 Hetmana Polubotka St., 14013 Chernihiv, Ukraine.ORCID 0000-0003-2702-6430
Oleksandr YakovenkoDepartment of Ecology, Geography and Nature Management, T.H. Shevchenko National University "Chernihiv Colehium", 53 Hetmana Polubotka St., 14013 Chernihiv, Ukraine.ORCID 0000-0003-1417-6042
Halina TkaczenkoInstitute of Biology, Pomeranian University in Słupsk, Arciszewski St. 22B, 76-200 Słupsk, Poland.ORCID 0000-0003-3951-9005

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Adolescence represents a critical window of metabolic plasticity, during which profound hormonal, neurobiological, and physiological remodelling increases susceptibility to nutritional exposures. In parallel with the rising prevalence of obesity, insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease among young people, there is growing interest in the potential for functional food components to modulate epigenetic pathways that govern metabolic programming. This narrative review synthesises current evidence (2015-2025) from PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase to elucidate how diet-derived bioactive compounds influence epigenetic regulation relevant to adipogenesis, appetite control, insulin signalling, and lipid homeostasis during adolescence. Particular emphasis is placed on molecular mechanisms, including DNA methylation changes in genes regulating adipocyte differentiation, hypothalamic neuropeptide expression, and pancreatic β-cell function; histone modifications, such as acetylation and methylation events that remodel chromatin accessibility in metabolic tissues; and modulation of microRNA networks implicated in lipid metabolism, inflammatory signalling, and insulin secretion. Furthermore, the review examines the interplay between diet, the gut microbiota, and the epigenome, highlighting the role of microbially derived short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) as endogenous histone deacetylase inhibitors and mediators of epigenetic remodelling in adipose tissue. By linking these mechanisms to specific functional food components, including polyphenols, long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, fermentable dietary fibre, and other bioactive molecules, we demonstrate how nutritional signals can counteract maladaptive metabolic trajectories and potentially reduce the intergenerational transmission of metabolic risk. A deeper understanding of these epigenetic effects provides the foundation for developing personalised nutrition strategies aimed at preventing metabolic disorders from emerging during adolescence and beyond.

Indexed as

Epigenesis, GeneticFunctional FoodAdolescentAnimalsDNA MethylationHumansdietary fibreDNA methylationepigeneticsfunctional foodshistone modificationinsulin resistancemetabolic healthmetabolic programmingmicroRNAobesityomega-3 fatty acidspolyphenols

Identifiers

PMID41752200
PMCPMC12940604

What Socratic holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.