Canterbury University researcher Dr Victoria Metcalf is out to delve into the Antarctic seas for some answers about fish and how they process fat.
Canterbury University researcher Dr Victoria Metcalf is out to delve into the Antarctic seas for some answers about fish. Metcalf will use the genetic filter technology to understand how fish actually metabolize fat. This study will aid in the understanding of the existing connection between fat metabolism and heart disease.
According to Metcalf, Antarctic fish metabolize fat for fuel, unlike humans who get the energy from carbohydrates. In her estimate, the area of fat metabolism is yet to be studied in detail. Though there is enough evidence that fat metabolism is connected to heart disease, there are still areas where the connection between the two is not clearly understood. By studying the fat metabolism mechanism in vertebrates, it will indeed be easy to relate the implications in humans, which will greatly benefit the medical field.
