Towards understanding new therapies for obesity and diabetes: discovering new regulators of lipid metabolism
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Research Project Leader
Professor Matthew Watt+61 3 8344 8663
Project Details
Cells maintain a delicate balance of lipid (fat) synthesis and breakdown and dysregulation of lipid balance underpins the development of many diseases including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, some cancers and fatty liver disease.
The aim of this study is to identify novel proteins that are essential for regulating lipid balance in cells, to determine the expression pattern of these proteins in metabolic diseases (e.g. obesity, diabetes and fatty liver disease) and to determine whether altering the expression of these protiens influences metabolism in cells. This will be achieved by combining proteomic profiling (with space and time resolution) and deletion of the target proteins using a state-of-art CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing tool.
The project will also assess the therapeutic relevance of targeting the newly discovered proteins for the treatment of metabolic diseases.
Researchers
Professor Matthew Watt, Head of Department of Physiology, Head of Laboratory
Dr Magda Montgomery, Senior Research Fellow
Dr Ayenachew Bezawork-Geleta, Research Fellow
Dr Jacquie Bayliss, Research Assistant
Dr Paula Miotto, Research Fellow
Research Opportunities
This research project is available to Honours students to join as part of their thesis.
Please contact the Research Group Leader to discuss your options.