Objective
Abdominal obesity is related to a number of adverse health outcomes but the relationships between expansion of certain fat depots and health outcomes, or the mechanisms by which adipose tissue communicates to the rest of the body, are unclear. Abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) is divided into two anatomically and morphologically distinct layers (above and below the Scarpa’s fascia). Preliminary data show that expansion of the deep SAT (dSAT) is strongly related to insulin resistance in a manner nearly identical to that of visceral adipose tissue, while superficial SAT (sSAT) appears to follow the pattern of lower body fat.
I will use a range of techniques to characterize morphological and physiological differences between dSAT and sSAT in humans and also explore the potential for genetic regulation of fat layer distribution.
I will establish a cohort of 1,000 subjects from Oxford Biobank, in whom the SAT layers will be quantified by ultrasound. The technique will be verified against magnetic resonance imaging. I will interrogate morphological/functional differences between SAT layers by taking ultrasound-guided biopsies. Functional characterization of the tissue will consist of transcriptomic patterns, analysis of tissue the explant secretome and adipocyte differentiation capacity. The host group has recently taken part in the first genome-wide association study searching for genetic variants associated with fat distribution and I will capitalize on this by using the unique SAT layer phenotype (n=1000) in combination with a new SNPchip (Illumina iSELECT to be employed in Oxford Biobank, n=5,000). The new SNPchip is based on largely functional variants derived from the 1,000-genomes project and exome sequences of 11,500 people.
This study has the potential to provide the medical community with a new, easy-to-use anthropometric tool with strong relationships to obesity-related health outcomes together with functional annotations of the relevant tissues.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- engineering and technology medical engineering diagnostic imaging magnetic resonance imaging
- natural sciences biological sciences genetics genomes
- medical and health sciences health sciences nutrition obesity
- natural sciences physical sciences acoustics ultrasound
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Programme(s)
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Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Call for proposal
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Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
FP7-PEOPLE-2011-IEF
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Funding Scheme
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Coordinator
OX1 2JD Oxford
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.