Kostas Tsintzas

Contact

• workRoom D62a The University of Nottingham Medical School
  Queen's Medical Centre
  Nottingham
  NG7 2UH
  UK
• work0115 82 30127
• fax0115 82 30103
• kostas.tsintzas@nottingham.ac.uk

Research Summary

Interests

• Molecular basis of insulin resistance in obesity, diabetes and ageing
• Nutrient-gene interactions in skeletal muscle, liver and adipose tissue
• Regulation of substrate integration in skeletal muscle, liver and adipose tissue
• Nutrition and exercise in health and disease

Techniques

• Determination of skeletal muscle and cardiovascular function.
• Measurements of insulin sensitivity, energy expenditure and body composition.
• Use of hormone, lipid, and tracer infusions to assess metabolic health
• Determination of blood, liver and muscle metabolites and enzyme activities (fluorescence, spectrophotometry and radioimmunoassays).
• Microassays for single muscle fibre metabolites (fluorescence, radioisotopes, histochemistry).
• Characterisation of RNA and protein in skeletal muscle (Real-Time PCR, SDS-PAGE, Western blotting).
• Use of primary human skeletal muscle culture

Current Projects

• Increasing skeletal muscle carnitine content to improve glycaemic control in individuals recently diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes

• Effects of lipid-induced insulin resistance on human skeletal muscle protein turnover

• Skeletal muscle metabolism and gene expression in young and older subjects following recovery from exercise

• The role of FGF21 in the control of energy metabolism, food intake and body weight

• Effects of ageing and vitamin D deficiency on vitamin D receptor in human skeletal muscle

• Effects of skipping breakfast on metabolic health of middle aged lean and overweight individuals

Collaborators

• Dr Andy Bennett
• Dr Andy Murton
• Dr Tim Parr
• Dr Francis Stephens
• Prof. Fran Ebling
• Prof. Paul Greenhaff
• Prof. Ian Macdonald
• Prof. Opinder Sahota
• Dr James Betts (University of Bath)
• Dr Simon Jones (University of Birmingham)
• Prof. Luc vanLoon (University of Maastricht)
• Prof. Jeremy Tomlinson (University of Birmingham)