At the laboratories of the Edmund Mach Foundation, the connection between nutrition and brain health has been explored, with a particular focus on the neuroactive compounds found in tomatoes. The NeuroTOm project, funded by the European Union, involved researchers from Wageningen University and analyzed four varieties of tomatoes to identify potentially neuroprotective substances such as polyphenols and amino acids. Under the direction of Urska Vrhovsek, post-doctoral researcher Ana Kovačič conducted studies on the behavior of these compounds in a simulated digestion model.
The results suggest that certain substances, such as tomatine and bisphenol S, may reach the colon and influence brain functions. These findings represent a significant advancement in understanding the role of diet in the prevention of neurodegenerative diseases. Additionally, the results have been presented at international conferences, including the Nordic Metabolomics Conference held in Turku, Finland, last August, highlighting the growing interest of the scientific community in this topic.
