Research area

My research focus on diet and genetics of the Greenlandic Inuit in relation to metabolic health. I am currently focusing on a genetic variant causing carriers to be unable to digest the most common sugar (sucrose).

Current research

Research project: The effect on metabolism, food intake and preferences of a knock-out gene variant involved in carbohydrate metabolism in Greenland

Aim: Intolerance of sucrose is in general very rare, however, it is relatively common in Greenland and other Arctic populations due to a genetic variant that only exists in Arctic populations. The variant results in an inabilty to digest sucrose - meaning that if you inherited this genetic variant from your parents, you cannot tolerate sugar. We recently found out that the Greenlandic carriers are metabolically healthier than non-carriers. I completed a dietary intervention in Greenland in 2022 to figure out why.

Collaborators

• Steno Diabetes Center Greenland
• Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research, University of Copenhagen
• Department of Food Science, University of Copenhagen

Are more detailed description of the project can be found at PubMed ​

​Publications