Chia seeds. Credit: Pankaj Jaiswal
Oregon State University scientists have sequenced the chia genome and in doing so provided a blueprint for future research that capitalizes on the nutritional and human health benefits of the plant.
In the paper just published in Frontiers in Plant Science, the researchers identified chia genes associated with improving nutrition and sought after properties for pharmaceuticals that could be used to treat everything from cancer to high blood pressure. The seeds of the chia plant have received widespread attention in recent years because of the nutritional punch they pack.
Others have sequenced the chia genome, but this paper provides a more detailed look at the molecular level and the potential of genetic data mining with a keen focus on human health applications.
“This research opens up possibilities for scientists to study chia seed through the lens of improving human health while at the same time continuing to further our knowledge of all the nutritional benefits of chia,” said Pankaj Jaiswal, a professor in the Department of Botany and Plant Pathology in the College of Agricultural Sciences at Oregon State.
The researchers are also hopeful that the findings will spur interest in growing chia in Oregon, where they say climate conditions are similar to those in the regions of South America where chia is primarily grown. Researchers at the University of Kentucky have helped spur chia seed growing in that state.
Chia is considered an orphan or minor crop that has traditionally not received attention from scientists like rice, wheat and maize, all of which contributed to last century’s Green Revolution that mitigated global hunger and saved millions of lives.
“Now we are at the point where long-term food and nutrition security requires diversifying the human diet by breeding and making genetic improvement to nutrient-rich, so-called minor crops like chia,” said Sushma Naithani, an associate professor, senior research in the Department of Botany and Plant Pathology.
In recent years, global demand for nutrient-rich so-called orphan crops such as chia, millets and yam has increased, the researchers note. Beyond their nutritional value, they are important because they can often grow on marginal land unsuitable for many traditional grain crops, an important asset in mitigating climate change.
Chia plant. Credit: Pankaj Jaiswal
Chia seeds—which are small, round and can be black, brown and white—are high in fiber, healthy fats, and proteins and often are part of recipes for items including smoothies, yogurt, oatmeal, pancakes and granola bars.
Past research has found:
- Polyunsaturated fatty acids found in chia improve cardiovascular health and cholesterol and have anti-cancer properties.
- Chia seeds’ high fiber content helps stabilize blood glucose levels in type-2 diabetes patients and aid people with gastrointestinal-tract-related diseases.
- Protein in chia seeds has the potential to help treat cancer and high blood pressure and also has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties.