Volume 84, Issue 9 p. 2666-2673
Health, Nutrition, & Food

fMRI-Based Brain Responses to Olfactory Stimulation with Two Putatively Orexigenic Functional Food Ingredients at Two Different Concentrations in the Pig Model

Nicolas Coquery

Corresponding Author

Nicolas Coquery

INRA, INSERM, Univ. Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Rennes, France

Direct inquiries to author Coquery (E-mail: [email protected]).Search for more papers by this author
Sophie Menneson

Sophie Menneson

INRA, INSERM, Univ. Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Rennes, France

Phodé, Terssac, France

Search for more papers by this author
Paul Meurice

Paul Meurice

INRA, INSERM, Univ. Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Rennes, France

Search for more papers by this author
Régis Janvier

Régis Janvier

INRA, INSERM, Univ. Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Rennes, France

Search for more papers by this author
Pierre Etienne

Pierre Etienne

Phodé, Terssac, France

Search for more papers by this author
Virginie Noirot

Virginie Noirot

Phodé, Terssac, France

Search for more papers by this author
David Val-Laillet

David Val-Laillet

INRA, INSERM, Univ. Rennes, Nutrition Metabolisms and Cancer, NuMeCan, Rennes, France

Search for more papers by this author
First published: 23 August 2019
Citations: 7

Abstract

Natural plant extracts are increasingly used as functional feed ingredients in animal husbandry and food ingredients in human alternative medicine to improve welfare and health. We investigated in 20 growing pigs via functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) the brain blood oxygen level–dependent (BOLD) responses to olfactory stimulation with two sensory functional feed ingredients, A and B, at two different concentrations. Functional ingredient A contained extracts from Citrus sinensis (60% to 80%), and ingredient B contained a mixture of extracts Oreganum vulgarae (40% to 55%) and Cymbopogon flexuosus (20% to 25%). Increased concentration of ingredients induced a higher activation in reward and cognitive areas compared to lower concentrations. Moreover, considering both ingredients at the highest concentration, the ingredient A elicited higher brain responses in brain areas involved in hedonism/pleasantness compared to ingredient B, and more specifically in the caudate nucleus and orbitofrontal cortex. Our findings shed new light in the scope of emotion regulation through olfactory modulation via sensory functional ingredients, which opens the way to further preclinical studies in animal models and translational research in the context of nutrition, welfare, and health.

Practical Application

Functional food/feed ingredients are gaining interest for improving health and welfare in humans and animals. Besides representing an alternative to antibiotics for example, food ingredients and their sensory characteristics might have a positive impact on emotions and consequently on well-being. Functional brain imaging in large animals such as in the pig model is a promising approach to investigate the central and behavioural effects of food ingredients, and determine the most effective blends and concentrations to modulate internal and emotional states.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The functional feed/food ingredients used in this study were designed by Phodé that also co-funded, together with the ANRT (French Association for Research and Technology) and INRA, the research project and PhD grant of Sophie MENNESON. Authors Sophie MENNESON, Virginie NOIROT, and Pierre ETIENNE were employed by company Phodé. All other authors declare no competing interests.