My research interests focus on whole animal energetics and physiology. This framework provides the common theme that links my interests in the role of energy use during both reproduction and the development of obesity.
Current Research
My doctoral work on the energetics of hedgehogs (Jagiellonian University, Poland) and postdoctoral work on reproduction in laboratory mice (University of Aberdeen, Scotland) and deer mice (University of California, Riverside, USA) have resulted in a novel hypothesis that the limits to sustained energy intake at peak lactation are imposed by the capacity of the animal to dissipate body heat. This hypothesis is currently under further investigation.
My obesity related work focuses on the effects of photoperiod on body mass, food intake, body composition, energy balance and hypothalamic gene expression in the field vole, which provides a new animal model for the investigation of seasonal adiposity at both organism and molecular levels. The major finding of this project is that the photoperiod-induced increase in body mass is associated with the up-regulation of the suppressor of cytokine signalling (SOCS3). This appears to act as a desensitisation mechanism that allows animals to ignore elevated leptin levels generated by increased adiposity, leading to an accumulation of body fat without counter-regulatory mechanisms.
Modulation of gut microbiota composition and predicted metabolic capacity after nutritional programming with a plant-rich diet in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar): insights across developmental stages
Tawfik, M. M., Lorgen-Ritchie, M., Krol, E., McMillan, S., Norambuena, F., Bolnick, D. I., Douglas, A., Tocher, D. R., Betancor, M. B., Martin, S.
Can nutritional programming in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) be optimised with a reduced stimulus period?
McMillan, S., Martin, S. A., Król, E., Norambuena, F., Baumgärtner, S., Gong, X., Tawfik, M. M., Glencross, B., Taylor, J. F., Tocher, D. R., Betancor, M. B.
Maternal High Fat Diet in Lactation Impacts Hypothalamic Neurogenesis and Neurotrophic Development, Leading to Later Life Susceptibility to Obesity in Male but Not Female Mice
Xu, Y., Yang, D., Wang, L., Król, E., Mazidi, M., Li, L., Huang, Y., Niu, C., Liu, X., Lam, S. M., Shui, G., Douglas, A., Speakman, J. R.
Determinants of heart rate in Svalbard reindeer reveal mechanisms of seasonal energy management
Trondrud, L. M., Pigeon, G., Albon, S., Arnold, W., Evans, A. L., Irvine, R. J., Król, E., Ropstad, E., Stien, A., Veiberg, V., Speakman, J. R., Loe, L. E.
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, vol. 376, no. 1831, 20200215
Fat storage influences fasting endurance more than body size in an ungulate
Trondrud, L. M., Pigeon, G., Król, E., Albon, S., Evans, A. L., Arnold, W., Hambly, C., Irvine, R. J., Ropstad, E., Stien, A., Veiberg, V., Speakman, J. R., Loe, L. E.
Integration of Transcriptome, Gross Morphology and Histopathology in the Gill of Sea Farmed Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar): Lessons from Multi-site Sampling
Krol, E., Noguera, P., Shaw, S., Costelloe, E., Gajardo, K., Valdenegro, V., Bickerdike, R., Douglas, A., Martin, S. A. M.
