Specialization
Focus of research
The main focus of my research group is understanding the bioenergetic and physiological limits of human performance. In particular, I am interested in how the oxygen transport and utilization systems govern skeletal muscle bioenergetics and exercise tolerance across health, ageing, disuse, and disease.
To achieve this, we take an integrative and multi-scale approach that spans the full biological hierarchy: from molecular regulation (e.g., proteomics) and single cell analyses (e.g., electron microscopy), to tissue-level (i.e., high-resolution mitochondrial respirometry) and whole-body physiological assessments (i.e., indirect calorimetry, CPET, performance testing). Collectively, our goal is to understand how derangements in these systems contribute to exercise limitation in chronic disease and ageing on the one hand, and how adaptations in these systems support elite performance on the other.
My major ongoing projects include: 1) the impact of ageing on skeletal muscle oxygen transport and mitochondrial bioenergetics; 2) the pathophysiological bases of exercise limitations in ME/CFS; 3) muscle mitochondrial adaptations to exercise training in type 1 diabetes; and 4) the relationship between in vivo muscle mechanics and energetics.