Identification and characterisation of novel copper homeostasis genes and proteins

铜是一种必需的营养素，过量时也是有毒的。存在调节铜水平的特定机制，这些机制在许多物种中是保守的。铜调节的中断会导致许多疾病，包括：心血管疾病，骨质疏松症和阿尔茨海默氏症。我的目标是使用模式生物果蝇（醋蝇）与人类培养细胞一起鉴定和鉴定新的铜调节蛋白，作为预防或治疗这些疾病的工作基础。

Copper is an essential nutrient that is also toxic when in excess. Specific mechanisms exist to regulate copper levels and these are conserved across many species. Disrupted copper regulation contributes to many diseases including: cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and Alzheimer’s. I aim to identify and characterise novel copper regulatory proteins using the model organism Drosophila (vinegar fly) together with human cultured cells as a foundation for work to prevent or treat these diseases.