The effect of walnut consumption on the peripheral blood mononuclear cell transcriptome.

• Date posted:  02/07/2026 
• Posted In:
• Walnuts,
• Cancer,
• Gut Health,

Kuo, A., S. Kurkcu, J.W. Birk, H. Vaziri, N. Fan, D.W. Rosenberg, C. Giardina, 2026.
The effect of walnut consumption on the peripheral blood mononuclear cell transcriptome.
Genes Nutr. doi: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12263-026-00793-0.

Abstract: Gene expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) isolated from subjects before and after a 3-week walnut supplementation was examined for differentially expressed genes by RNA-seq. Significant gene expression changes were observed following walnut consumption with gene enrichment analysis showing significant overlap with genes previously associated with a robust memory B cell response following vaccination. An in-depth clustering analysis of the data revealed that a relatively large subpopulation of the subjects (11/19) showed a stronger and more uniform response to walnut consumption. This group of individuals showed an even more extensive overlap with genes associated with memory B cell production, with a significant overlap also observed for genes activated by an influenza vaccine adjuvant. The genes altered by walnut included numerous kinases and transcription factors, yet a deconvolution analysis did not reveal changes in the major PBMC cell types. Our findings show that a walnut supplementation can change gene expression in PBMCs in a manner consistent with a more responsive adaptive immune response without affecting the cellular composition of the blood.