Research within the Nutrition and Biosciences Research Group is focused on the interrelationship between food, nutrition, and health. Our research aims to better understand the health and wellbeing of individuals and populations across the lifespan and how diets, foods and food components can influence this. Previous and current research studies cut across the Food, Nutritional and Biological Sciences to help understand the complex relationships between food environments, food choice behaviours, nutrient intake, physical activity, ageing, and health. Our research interests and expertise include fundamental aspects of our susceptibility to disease (from clinical, public health and personalised perspectives) and how nutrients affect health, as well as the development and evaluation of interventions designed to improve food choice behaviours, physical activity, and health (including dietary assessment and measuring food environments). We also have an interest in food quality management, food product development, and the sustainable production of healthy and nutritious foods.
Current Members Include:
- Dr Richard Webb
- Dr Leo Stevenson
- Dr Margaret Charnley
- Dr Amy Morgan
- Dr Rasha Swadi
New frontiers in lipoprotein analysis: Small molecules, big questions?
Low-density lipoprotein particles are a causal factor of cardiovascular disease. This project aims to use a combination of ultracentrifugation and liquid-chromatography mass spectrometry to determine the molecular composition of these particles, which will offer unique insights in their functionality and role in disease.
Molecular determinants of metabolically healthy obese subjects: Insights from a Qatari population.
In Qatar there is a high prevalence of obesity. This project aims to investigate molecular characteristics which are associated with obesity phenotypes in a Qatari population. Findings from this project will inform more personalised treatment approaches with a view to reducing the levels of obesity in this population.
The Impact of Low Energy Availability upon Cardiovascular Markers in Exercising Females
Consuming inadequate energy for physiological requirements is called ‘low energy availability’ (LEA) and is highly prevalent in exercising females and extremely detrimental to health. Literature often cites that cardiovascular risks are associated with LEA; however, the evidence underpinning this claim is scant. Furthermore, some authors suggest the detrimental aspects resulting from LEA may be reversible by increasing dietary intake. However, whether this reversibility applies to cardiovascular issues is unknown. We are currently addressing these aspects through an ongoing research project which hope will offer insights into the condition.
The Prevalence, Characteristics, and Determinants of Low Energy Availability in Female Footballers
This ongoing study aims to investigate the concept of low energy availability (LEA) in female footballers of various levels ranging from grassroots through to elite. There is little research investigating this particular population in this highly topical and important area of female health and we are aiming to address this through our interdisciplinary study in which colleagues from several different disciplines and institutions are collaborating together to address the problem.
Explorations of weight change and dietary intake in pregnant women living with obesity.
Maternal nutrition can have a profound impact on both foetal development and long term health risk in off-spring. Therefore, exploring food choice and eating behaviours in pregnant women helps to inform healthy eating guidelines and reduce excessive gestational weight gain.
Investigating midwives perceptions, knowledge and experiences of caring for pregnant women with obesity.
Midwives are at the interface of delivering healthy eating and weight management advice to pregnant women. However, BMIs of 30 to 35 are often normalised. Consistent and informed guidance is needed for the referral of pregnant women with obesity to appropriate dietetic and/or weight management services.
Nouri M., Davies I.G., Webb R.J., Mazidi M., Makhtoomi M., Rezaianzadeh A., Johari M.G., Faghih S. (2023) The Association between Ultra-Processed Foods and Conventional Markers of Cardiovascular Risk in an Adult Iranian Population. Nutrition Metabolism and Cardiovascular Diseases, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.numecd.2023.06.009
Lioy B., Webb R.J., Amirabdollahian F. (2023) The Association between the Atherogenic Index of Plasma and Cardiometabolic Risk Factors: A Review. Healthcare, https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11070966
Maierean S., Webb R.J., Banach M., Mazidi M. (2022) The Role of Inflammation and the Possibilities of Inflammation Reduction to Prevent Cardiovascular Events. European Heart Journal Open, https://doi.org/10.1093/ehjopen/oeac039
Darabi Z., Webb R.J., Mozaffari-Khosravi H., Mirzaei M., Davies I.G., Khayyatzadeh S.S., Mazidi M. (2022) Dietary phytochemical consumption is inversely associated with liver alkaline phosphatase in Middle Eastern adults. World Journal of Hepatology; https://www.wjgnet.com/1948-5182/abstract/v14/i5/1006.htm
Farhat G, Dewison F, Stevenson L. Knowledge and Perceptions of Non-Nutritive Sweeteners Within the UK Adult Population. Nutrients. 2021 Jan 29;13(2):444. doi: 10.3390/nu13020444.
Tay ME, Foster E, Stevenson L, Brownlee I. The Adherence of Singaporean Students in Different Educational Institutions to National Food-Based Dietary Guidelines. Nutrients. 2020 Sep 30;12(10):2995. doi: 10.3390/nu12102995.
Lloyd AJ, Wilson T, Willis ND, Lyons L, Phillips H, Janssen HG, Stiegler M, Xie L, Tailliart K, Beckmann M, Stevenson L, Mathers JC, Draper J. Developing community-based urine sampling methods to deploy biomarker technology for the assessment of dietary exposure. Public Health Nutr. 2020 Dec;23(17):3081-3092. doi: 10.1017/S136898002000097X.
Charnley M, Newson L, Weeks A, Abayomi J. Pregnant Women Living with Obesity: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study of Dietary Quality and Pregnancy Outcomes. Nutrients. 2021 May 13;13(5):1652. doi: 10.3390/nu13051652.
Abayomi JC, Charnley MS, Cassidy L, Mccann MT, Jones J, Wright M, Newson LM. A patient and public involvement investigation into healthy eating and weight management advice during pregnancy. Int J Qual Health Care. 2020 Apr 21;32(1):28-34. doi: 10.1093/intqhc/mzz081.
McCann MT, Newson L, Burden C, Rooney JS, Charnley MS, Abayomi JC. A qualitative study exploring midwives' perceptions and knowledge of maternal obesity: Reflecting on their experiences of providing healthy eating and weight management advice to pregnant women. Matern Child Nutr. 2018 Apr;14(2):e12520. doi: 10.1111/mcn.12520.
Mc Auley MT and Morgan AE Cholesterol transport in blood, lipoproteins, and cholesterol metabolism in Cholesterol: from Biophysics to the Clinics (2022)
Warren T, McAlister R, Morgan A, Singh Rai T, McGilligan V, Bond R, Peace A, Corfe B, Mc Auley M, Watterson S. A Critical Review of the Interdependency and Co-Regulation of Vitamin D and cholesterol Metabolism. MDPI Cells (2021)
AE Morgan, KD Acutt, MT Mc Auley. Electrochemically detecting DNA methylation in the EN1 gene promoter: implications for understanding ageing and disease. Bioscience Reports (2020)
Morgan AE, Mc Auley MT. Cholesterol Homeostasis: An In Silico Investigation into How Aging Disrupts Its Key Hepatic Regulatory Mechanisms. MDPI Biology (2020)
Proctor CJ, Morgan AE, Mc Auley MT. Systems-based mechanisms of ageing in Encyclopedia of Biomedical Gerontology p332-345 (2020)
Morgan AE, Davies TJ, Mc Auley MT. DNA Methylation in Ageing and Age Related Diseases. Proceedings of the nutrition society (2018)
Mc Auley MT, Morgan AE, Mooney KM The role of Mathematical Modeling in Understanding Aging in Aging: Exploring a Complex Phenomenon (p637-652) Boca Raton, FL, Taylor Francis (2018)
Swadi Rasha, Keerthika Sampat, Anne Herrmann, Paul D. Losty, Violaine See & Diana J. Moss “CDK inhibitors reduce cell proliferation and reverse hypoxia-induced metastasis of neuroblastoma tumours in a chick embryo model” Scientific Reports. (2019)
R. Swadi, G. Mather, B. L. Pizer, P. D. Losty, V. See, and D. Moss “Optimising the chick chorioallantoic membrane xenograft model of neuroblastoma for drug delivery” BMC Cancer. (2018)
