Location: Grain Quality and Structure Research
Project Number: 3020-30600-002-027-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Sep 1, 2026
End Date: Aug 31, 2027
Objective:
This project supports USDA-ARS National Program 306 by advancing the understanding of sorghum grain composition and identifying health-promoting phenolic compounds that enhance end-use quality and expand value-added uses for U.S. sorghum. The work focuses on characterizing bioactive fractions from high-phenolic sorghum genotypes and determining their ability to inhibit adipocyte differentiation, suppress colon cancer cell proliferation, and modulate insulin signaling and glucose uptake in tissue culture systems. Complementary animal studies using diet-induced obese mice and a DSS-treated Apc/Min¿ model will evaluate how diverse sorghum products influence weight gain, metabolic dysfunction, inflammation, and colonic adenoma formation. Microbiome analyses of fecal and serum samples will provide insight into sorghum-driven microbial and metabolic changes related to obesity and colon cancer risk. The project aligns with USDA priorities to improve agricultural product quality, develop functional food ingredients, and support research that strengthens human health outcomes through crop-based interventions. Findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications to accelerate scientific and industry adoption.
Approach:
The cooperator will obtain fractionated extracts from high-phenolic sorghum from ARS and willsystematically test each fraction in defined in vitro models to quantify effects on adipogenesis and cancer-related cell proliferation. Differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells and preadipocytes will be assessed using standard adipogenic induction protocols, while proliferation assays in human colon cancer cell lines will be used to evaluate antiproliferative activity. Parallel cell-based assays will measure the influence of the same fractions on insulin signaling pathways and glucose uptake using established metabolic models to identify sorghum-derived modulators of metabolic function. To validate in vitro findings under physiologically relevant conditions, diet-induced obese mice will be used to test whole sorghum products for effects on body-weight trajectories, glucose homeostasis, and inflammatory markers, following controlled feeding and phenotyping protocols. A second in vivo model, the DSS-treated Apc/Min¿ mouse, will be employed to determine whether sorghum products modulate initiation or progression of colitis-associated colorectal neoplasia, providing mechanistic insight into potential chemopreventive properties. Fecal and serum samples from both mouse studies will be collected and transferred to ARS for microbiome and metabolite profiling to determine sorghum-induced shifts in microbial community structure and metabolic outputs relevant to obesity and colon cancer risk. Data generated across in vitro and in vivo systems will be integrated to identify candidate bioactive components, link compositional features to biological outcomes, and support ongoing ARS efforts to characterize sorghum phytochemical diversity. The resulting datasets and interpretations will be prepared for peer-reviewed publication, supporting USDA goals of advancing crop-based health research and strengthening sorghum’s value in the human food system.