Drosophila as a model to study metabolic adaptations of the intestine upon pathogenic infection.
Supervisor: Professor Julia Cordero, School of Cancer Sciences
Rotation project:
The adult intestine is a major organ with vital physiological, endocrine, immune and metabolic roles. These functions are achieved by stem cells and specialized cells such as absorptive enterocytes and hormone-producing enteroendocrine cells. Using Drosophila melanogaster, our laboratory is interested in understanding the mechanisms by which the intestine senses and responds to genetic and environmental cues, such as diet and pathogenic infections (1-4).
This mini project will involve:
- Using of in vivo metabolic sensors and metabolomics to characterize cell specific metabolic changes in the intestine caused by pathogenic infection.
- Using of genetic tools to study the functional significance of intestinal metabolic changes to gut function and animal survival following pathogenic infection.