It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Tuesday, December 16, 2025
Algae for health in food and pharma
Event to advance the understanding of algae’s health potential on 4th & 5th March 2026
Credit: European Science Communication Institute gGmbH
Cyanobacteria, micro- and macroalgae produce an infinite number of molecules, many of which have properties beneficial to health. They can relieve pain, alleviate inflammation, or boost our microbiome. Although there is much to uncover, the algae-based health and nutrition sector is growing.
The two-day summit will bring together scientists, innovators and industry leaders to explore the latest developments in algae cultivation and processing, food innovation, small molecules in pharma, and regulatory aspects. The goal is to advance the understanding of algae’s health potential and highlight how it can be applied across food and pharmaceutical sectors.
Algae for Health in Food and Pharma – Innovation and Industry Summit
Date: 4th & 5th March 2026
Location: Teagasc conference centre, Ashtown, Dublin, Ireland
The conference covers the industrial potential of algae and their bioactivities with a special focus on treating pain and inflammation. Other themes include the production and processing of algae as well as the development of functional foods, supplements and pharmaceuticals with compounds from algae.
The event provides a valuable platform for experts in the field of algae, food and pharma
to present their research during selected presentations
to showcase products and services of their company or start-up at booths.
The Algae for Health in Food and Pharma summit will create a space to exchange ideas and connect with key players in the growing algae-based health and nutrition sectors.
The networking initiative is funded by the Marine Institute under the Marine Research Programme with the support of the Government of Ireland, and is organised within the EU-funded Algae4IBD project. The Algae4IBD project isolates and characterises high-value molecules from algae to identify drug candidates and to develop food products that help prevent and treat pain and inflammation associated with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
Theobromine from cocoa linked to slower biological aging
“Our findings indicate that the reported beneficial links between theobromine intake on health and ageing extend to the molecular epigenetic level in humans.”
Figure 1.Major dietary sources of methylxanthines and their correlations in the TwinsUK sample. (A) Schematic presenting key methylxanthines, their respective dietary sources and their derivation as secondary metabolites. (B) Correlation heatmap of coffee-related metabolites in the TwinsUK sample. (C) Bar plot representation of the Elastic-net Regression coefficients with 10-fold cross-validation of variables against GrimAgeAccel in the TwinsUK sample.
“Our findings indicate that the reported beneficial links between theobromine intake on health and ageing extend to the molecular epigenetic level in humans.”
Epigenetic aging refers to biological changes that affect how genes function over time. It is measured using blood-based markers such as DNA methylation and telomere length, which together provide a more accurate picture of aging than chronological age.
In this work, researchers analyzed data from two large European studies. In 509 women from the TwinsUK cohort, they found that higher blood levels of theobromine were associated with slower aging, especially based on GrimAge, an epigenetic clock that predicts the risk of age-related disease and early death. The results were confirmed in 1,160 men and women from the German KORA study.
“We initially tested for the association between six metabolites found in coffee and cocoa, and epigenetic measures of ageing in blood samples from 509 healthy females from the TwinsUK cohort (median age = 59.8, IQR = 12.81, BMI = 25.35).“
Importantly, theobromine’s effects were independent of related compounds such as caffeine. Even after adjusting for these other substances and different lifestyle factors, the association with slower aging remained strong. The study also associated higher theobromine levels with longer telomeres, another marker of healthy aging.
While theobromine is commonly found in cocoa and chocolate, the study does not suggest increasing chocolate intake. However, it highlights the potential of everyday dietary components such as theobromine to influence aging. These findings support growing evidence that certain plant-based compounds may play a role in promoting long-term health. By identifying a connection between theobromine and slower biological aging, the study opens new directions for research into nutritional strategies for healthy aging.
A healthy Nordic diet, high in dietary fibre from whole grains, fruits and vegetables but with a small percentage of saturated fat, can assist in the treatment of both type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. This has been shown in a new clinical study in which the researchers compared three different types of diet.
After one year, researchers at Uppsala University have been able to show in this new study that a ‘healthy Nordic diet’ is better than both the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations and a low-carbohydrate diet when it comes to treating non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and type 2 diabetes.
The study was a randomised controlled trial in which 150 people with type 2 diabetes, or prediabetes, were randomly assigned to follow one of three diets for one year:
1) An anti-lipogenic diet, meaning a low-carbohydrate diet also low in animal-derived foods and high in polyunsaturated fats from the plant kingdom. Emphasis was placed on high-fat foods such as sunflower oil, walnuts, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, low-carbohydrate vegetables and protein-rich beans, lentils and some lean dairy products.
2) A healthy Nordic diet, which can be seen as a Nordic variant of the Mediterranean diet. It was low in saturated fat, but high in dietary fibre from whole grains, fruits and vegetables, with an emphasis on foods such as oat and rye flakes, oat bran, rye bread, crispbread, rapeseed oil, almonds, apples, pears, blueberries, raspberries, cabbage and peas, along with mackerel and salmon, low-fat natural yoghurt and cultured milk products, and plant-based cooking fat.
3) Control group, meaning usual care based on dietary advice according to the current Nordic Nutrition Recommendations, which is a diet rich in different types of fruits, vegetables, legumes, olive oil, and lean dairy products.
In all three groups, participants were to limit their consumption of red and processed meats, sweetened drinks, sweets and candy, and snacks with added sugar.
The benefits of the Nordic diet surprised the researchers
All three diets were expected to have beneficial effects, but the researchers wanted to investigate which was the most effective in reducing both liver fat and blood glucose levels. That the Nordic diet turned out to be so good surprised the researchers, who had assumed that the anti-lipogenic diet would yield the best results.
Although some of the beneficial effects of the healthy Nordic diet could be explained by the participants’ weight loss, the researchers found that weight loss only explained just over half (56 per cent) of the effect on liver fat.
The study evaluated a Nordic variant of the Mediterranean diet, which was found to contribute to weight loss as well as reduced levels of liver fat. This salmon salad is an example of a dish that fits within a healthy Nordic diet. It was developed by the research group.
Effects of an anti-lipogenic low-carbohydrate high polyunsaturated fat diet or a healthy Nordic diet versus usual care on liver fat and cardiometabolic disorders in type 2 diabetes or prediabetes: a randomized controlled trial
