POSITIVe

POSITIVE is a recently started network approved and funded by the COST organization in the field of Food & Agriculture. POSITIVE was launched the past 11th of December in Brussels and will run until the end of 2018. At present, it involves a total of 26 countries that will devote their work and cooperation to further understand the factors associated with human variability and its effects on the responsiveness to the intake of plant food bioactive compounds. The Grant Holder for this Action is INRA in France and the action is chaired by Dr. Christine Morand who will lead the network with the cooperation and help of a Management Committee (MC) and a Steering Committee (SC) formed by various members of the Action.

Cardiovascular and metabolic diseases can be prevented, delayed or reduced by improving our eating habits. Increasing the consumption of plant foods rich in a range of compounds with potential beneficial effects (‘bioactive compounds’) is an important strategy to fight these chronicle diseases. However, the translation of many promising preclinical results into human clinical trials has so far proven challenging mostly due to the large heterogeneity in individuals’ responsiveness to the intake of these compounds. POSITIVe will specifically address this issue by tackling: 1) the variability in human bioavalibility and capacity to metabolize these compounds (working group, WG1); 2) the variability in the response (bioactivity) of humans to the intake of these compounds (WG2) and 3) the translation of the results from WG1 and WG2 into applications relevant to the scientific community, food industry, public health regulatory authorities, health care professionals and the general public (consumers). The Action will also work and cooperate in the dissemination of results and information provided by the WGs (Focusing group, FG) and the training of young scientists (Short Scientific Missions, STMs). All these efforts will lead to a better understanding of the beneficial effects of plant bioactive compounds and their application against human cardiovascular and metabolic diseases and will position European researchers at the leadership of this field.

It will also provide new scientific knowledge to regulatory authorities for specific dietary recommendations directed to population groups and to the European food industry for the development of new functional personalized foods.

A website of POSITIVe is available to all members of the Action and also to promote the activities done under the frame of POSITIVe www6.inra.fr/cost-positive.

Facebook: facebook.com/costpositive

Detailed information about the COST office and POSITIVe organization can be found at: www.cost.eu