Professor Dominic Houlihan, Department of Zoology, University of Aberdeen, research interests and recent publications. Fish demonstrate remarkable diversity in life history strategies, physiology and structure and thus provide a rich source of material for studies on fundamental mechanisms linking structure and function, while offering the opportunity of setting the studies in an evolutionary context. Because of their economic importance, both in terms of fisheries and aquaculture, interest in how fish work has been steadily increasing. In Aberdeen we have excellent laboratory facilities and extremely interesting fresh water and marine environments in which to study fish biology. The reasons for this variation are largely unknown although considerable progress has been made in unravelling the protein metabolism of highly efficient fish and it has been demonstrated that these individuals turnover their proteins slowly.
Fish are often the focus of interest in cases of environmental pollution.
Fish cells in culture offer the opportunity of using a cell-based method for assessing water quality provided we know enough about the basic physiology of different cell types. We are investigating the link between oxygen consumption, protein metabolism and RNA turnover in cultured fish cells and the effects of environmental stress. The balance between essential amino acids in the diet and the source of fuels for metabolism is of central importance in designing fish diets and in optimising feeding regimes. Current research is into the structure of social hierarchies in groups of fish and the role that different diets may have on appetite, aggression, nutrition and health.