Australian Research Fellowship for Dr Giovanni Turchini

Deakin University's Dr Giovanni Turchini has won a prestigious Australian Research Fellowship under which he receives funding for his research project - Triggering the dormant capacity of fish to make omega 3 fatty acids - for five years.

Unsustainable fishing practices have led to increased pressure on aquaculture (fish farming) to meet the shortfalls in the supply of fish, which are the main source of many essential omega 3 fatty acids.

However, these fish have special nutritional requirements and need to be fed fish oil so they still contain high levels of omega 3. The problem is that current fish oil is derived from the already over-exploited wild fish stock – a situation that is environmentally and economically unstable, likely leading to a collapse of the sector within a few years.

Dr Turchini is working on new ways to increase the omega 3 oil contained in farmed fish from within. He is looking at innovative natural methods of producing fish still rich in omega 3 fatty acids without using fish oil.

“I am looking at the basic biology of fish,” he said. “It is changing the fish from within – triggering their dormant capability of transforming fatty acids available in vegetable oils into the good ones.”

Dr Turchini says in the last two years he has received fantastic support from many staff of the School of Life and Environmental Sciences and the School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences, in particular from the two co-investigators of the funded ARC Discovery project, Professor Andy Sinclair and Associate Professor Leigh Ackland, and from Dr David Francis and Dr Cenk Suphioglu, who were essential for developing the proposal.

To view Dr Turchini’s recent review paper please visit:
www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/122196685/PDFSTART

Dr Turchini’s papers are available at:
www.deakin.edu.au/research/admin/pubs/reports/database/dynamic/output/person/person.php
?person_code=turchgi

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