Objective
The high prevalence of obesity-related metabolic disease such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease urgently requires earlier interventions in the pathogenesis of these diseases and the identification of new therapeutic targets that work in humans. To show the human relevance of mechanistic information gained from rodent and cell studies on the pathogenesis of insulin resistance and diabetes, human translational research is needed. Non-invasive techniques are key in human translational research. Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS) is used in metabolic research, e.g. to determine ectopic lipids, but its potential is far from fully explored, and novel, dedicated MRS sequences can be developed to target new metabolites in vivo. As an example, I recently showed that the metabolite acetylcarnitine can be quantified by a modified MRS protocol, which allowed me to demonstrate in humans that acetylcarnitine concentrations in muscle strongly associate with insulin sensitivity. Furthermore, it lead to pilot data that show that the capacity to form acetylcarnitine can be hampered by low carnitine availability and that this is a determinant of metabolic flexibility, which can be succesfully targeted by carnitine supplementation. In the current proposal I aim to develop novel MRS methodology to detect levels of NAD+, another metabolite that is emerging from animal research as a central regulator of metabolic health. I will develop a non-invasive method to reliably quantify NAD+ in skeletal muscle by MRS. After careful validation of the method, I will determine the physiological relevance in a human cross-sectional study. I hypothesize that NAD+ and formation of acetylcarnitine act synergistically in determining protein acetylation and thereby affect metabolic flexibility. I will test this original hypothesis by increasing NAD+ and free carnitine using human interventional experiments and will investigate if this is a novel strategy to improve metabolic health.
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.
- natural sciences biological sciences biochemistry biomolecules proteins
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine endocrinology diabetes
- natural sciences biological sciences biochemistry biomolecules lipids
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine cardiology cardiovascular diseases
- natural sciences physical sciences optics spectroscopy
You need to log in or register to use this function
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
-
H2020-EU.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
See all projects funded under this programme
Topic(s)
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.
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.
Funding Scheme
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.
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.
ERC-STG - Starting Grant
See all projects funded under this funding scheme
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2017-STG
See all projects funded under this callHost institution
Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
6200 MD Maastricht
Netherlands
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.