OxTalks is Changing
OxTalks will soon move to the new Halo platform and will become 'Oxford Events.' There will be a need for an OxTalks freeze. This was previously planned for Friday 14th November – a new date will be shared as soon as it is available (full details will be available on the Staff Gateway).
In the meantime, the OxTalks site will remain active and events will continue to be published.
If staff have any questions about the Oxford Events launch, please contact halo@digital.ox.ac.uk
Sugar and Starvation: Metabolic Strategies Across Evolutionary Extremes
How do organisms survive when food becomes scarce? My lab investigates the extraordinary metabolic strategies evolved by animals that thrive under extreme nutrient limitation. A central model in our work is the Mexican cavefish Astyanax mexicanus, a species that has repeatedly colonized lightless, nutrient-poor caves and evolved remarkable adaptations to starvation. These fish exhibit metabolic phenotypes that resemble human disease states—such as insulin resistance, extreme hyperglycemia, and fat accumulation—yet remain healthy and long-lived. Using tools ranging from transgenic lines, gene editing, and organoid models to multi-omics and cell-based assays, we explore how cavefish rewire classical metabolic pathways. Our work reveals how evolutionary processes can turn pathological states into adaptive solutions, shedding light on fundamental questions in energy balance, resilience, and longevity. In this talk, I will present recent findings from our group, including cellular and systemic adaptations to starvation, evolved shifts in autophagy and sugar metabolism, and emerging parallels to mammalian fasting biology. By combining evolutionary biology with molecular physiology, we aim to uncover new principles of metabolic resilience with relevance far beyond the cave.
Date:
27 February 2026, 13:00
Venue:
Sherrington Library, off Parks Road OX1 3PT
Venue Details:
Sherrington Building
Speaker:
Professor Nicolas Rohner (University of Münster)
Organising department:
Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics (DPAG)
Organisers:
Dr Thomas Keeley (DPAG, University of Oxford),
Dr Mootaz Salman (DPAG, University of Oxford)
Organiser contact email address:
events@dpag.ox.ac.uk
Host:
Associate Professor Mathilda Mommersteeg (DPAG University of Oxford)
Part of:
DPAG Head of Department Seminar Series
Booking required?:
Not required
Audience:
Members of the University only
Editor:
Hannah Simm
