Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences Department of Physiology

Profile

In 2005 I was awarded a BSc (Hons) in Sport and Exercise Sciences by The University of Birmingham in the UK. Following graduation I took up the offer of a 15 month clinical research internship in the USA at The Nutrition, Metabolism and Exercise Laboratory at The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock. My research interests focus on aspects of skeletal muscle and adipose tissue metabolism in relation to exercise and diabetes. Whilst I continue to focus on my studies for a career in science, I try to maintain a sensible study/life balance and look forward to the time I spend with family and friends and on my hobbies and interests. I am a keen runner and cyclist and regularly compete at both. I also have a great love for travel and the outdoors with a definite case of wanderlust.

Teaching

Tutor: BioSciences, St Mary’s College
Demonstrator: Physiology of Muscle and Exercise 536-308

Service to the University, discipline or community and recent presentations

I am a member of The American Physiological Society, The American Diabetes Association, and The American College of Sports Medicine.

Research Profile, Interests and Recent Publications

My research interests focus on the molecular mechanisms of enhanced insulin action following exercise in patients with type 2 diabetes, including analysis of the paracrine crosstalk between adipose tissue and skeletal muscle. My current PhD studies within the laboratory of Professor Mark Hargreaves and Dr Glenn McConnell aim to investigate the effects of chronic exercise on the regulation of adipose tissue GLUT-4 expression and adipokines in patients with type 2 diabetes. In addition, we are conducting a study to determine whether an acute bout of exercise activates skeletal muscle mitochondrial biogenesis and GLUT-4 expression normally in these individuals. My research studies utilize a range of methods including human exercise trials, glucose clamp techniques and cell culture experiments.

Recent Publications:

Yeo, SE and Coker, RH, Aerobic Exercise Training versus the Etiology of Insulin Resistance. The European Journal of Sports Science, 8 (1): 3-14, 2008.

Yeo, SE, Hays, NP, Dennis, RA, Kortebein, PM, Sullivan, DH, Evans, WJ, and RH Coker. Fat distribution and glucose metabolism in older, obese men and women. Journal of Gerontology: Biological and Medical Sciences, 62(12):1393-401, 2007.

Wallis, GA, Yeo, SE, Blannin, AK, and AE Jeukendrup. Dose-response effects of ingested carbohydrate on exercise metabolism in women. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 39(1):131-8, 2007.

Yeo, SE, Jentjens, RLP, Wallis, GA, and AE Jeukendrup. Caffeine increases exogenous carbohydrate oxidation during exercise. The Journal of Applied Physiology, 99(3):844-50, 2005.

Research Funding

Recent Research Presentations

• Caffeine increases exogenous carbohydrate oxidation during prolonged exercise. The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, San Diego, USA, April 2005.

• Caffeine and substrate utilisation during exercise. The Catcon Military Feeding Conference, Birmingham, UK, April 2005.

• Plasma adiponectin is not altered by moderate or heavy aerobic exercise training in elderly, overweight individuals. The American College of Sports Medicine Annual Meeting, Denver, USA May 2006.

• Inverse relationship between visceral fat and hepatic insulin action in obese adults. The American Diabetes Association Annual Meeting, Washington DC, USA, June 2006.

• Exercise-induced changes in abdominal adipose tissue: effects of training intensity and caloric expenditure. The American College of Sports Medicine Integrative Physiology of Exercise Conference, Indianapolis, IN, USA, Sept. 2006.

Supervisor

Mark Hargreaves