Regulated muscle-based thermogenesis for body temperature regulation. Mammals maintain a constant core body temperature by generating heat in resting muscles in response to changes in the environmental temperatures. This project aims to show how the skeletal muscles that are closer to the body core contribute the majority of heat, how the muscles of the limbs have their heat generation curtailed as necessary, and how this is coordinated by the body in response to ambient temperature. Project out ....Regulated muscle-based thermogenesis for body temperature regulation. Mammals maintain a constant core body temperature by generating heat in resting muscles in response to changes in the environmental temperatures. This project aims to show how the skeletal muscles that are closer to the body core contribute the majority of heat, how the muscles of the limbs have their heat generation curtailed as necessary, and how this is coordinated by the body in response to ambient temperature. Project outcomes include defining, for the first time, how heat generation in the muscles of the body is regulated. This should provide critical knowledge of mammalian evolution and ways to manipulate metabolism, which may provide ways to assist the production of meat by managing hypothermia and hyperthermia risk in agriculture.Read moreRead less
ARC/NHMRC Research Network in Genes and Environment in Development. Interactions between the early environment and the genetic regulatory program of the developing organism have major consequences for the lifetime health of individuals. The primary objective of the Network in Genes and Environment in Development is to harness the resources of leading researchers from the currently distinct disciplines of developmental biology and developmental physiology to define key developmental regulatory ne ....ARC/NHMRC Research Network in Genes and Environment in Development. Interactions between the early environment and the genetic regulatory program of the developing organism have major consequences for the lifetime health of individuals. The primary objective of the Network in Genes and Environment in Development is to harness the resources of leading researchers from the currently distinct disciplines of developmental biology and developmental physiology to define key developmental regulatory networks and to address how environmental factors impinge on these regulatory networks. The formation of this National Research Network is unique, timely and strategic. It will generate new insights into the mechanisms by which events in early life determine the risk of adverse outcomes in perinatal and adult life.Read moreRead less
Muscle fibre excitability and calcium regulation in skeletal muscle of amphibians and mammals. The fundamental role of skeletal muscle is posture and movement. Essential for this is a specialised cell structure and a complex regulation of function. This project will define key aspects of muscle structure and functional regulation crucial to developing targets for improving function under stressed states such as fatigue, disease and age.
Calcium cycling and heat generation in skeletal muscle fibres. This project aims to uncover the mechanisms that enable mammalian skeletal muscle to play a major role in generating the heat required to maintain a constant body temperature. The ability to modulate body heat played a defining role in the evolution of species, their behaviour and global distribution. How heat production occurs in resting muscle is of fundamental importance and will be defined for the first time, providing new avenu ....Calcium cycling and heat generation in skeletal muscle fibres. This project aims to uncover the mechanisms that enable mammalian skeletal muscle to play a major role in generating the heat required to maintain a constant body temperature. The ability to modulate body heat played a defining role in the evolution of species, their behaviour and global distribution. How heat production occurs in resting muscle is of fundamental importance and will be defined for the first time, providing new avenues to manipulate metabolic rate and counter obesity.Read moreRead less