These are some, but not all, of the models commonly employed in our research.
α-Tocopherol-Transfer-Protein Knockout Mouse
The α-tocopherol-transfer-protein knockout mouse (TTP-/-) is the best animal model to study vitamin E deficiency and deficiency-related diseases. Because of the deletion of the gene for the α-tocopherol-transfer-protein (TTP), this mouse lost the ability to retain α-tocopherol in the body and, if not fed α-tocopherol at very high doses, develops vitamin E deficiency symptoms including ataxia and female infertility. The model is also suited to study the consequences of the absence of a functional TTP, which might shed some light on the biological mechanisms of TTP function.
Senescence-Accelerated Mouse
The fast-aging senescence-accelerated mouse - prone (SAMP8) and its normally aging counterpart senescence-accelerated mouse - resistant 1 (SAMR1) represent an excellent research model to study age-dependent functional decline.
Human Intervention Trials
We perform human intervention trials to investigate the biological activities of selected micronutrients and phytochemicals and follow their absorption and excretion kinetics to study their bioavailability.
Cell Culture
Cell culture experiments are performed to investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying the cellular uptake and sorting of micronutrients and phytochemicals. To this end, we employ standard cell lines, such as with HepG2, Huh7 and HT-29, as well as transfected cells that express proteins of interest to the respective scientific questions.