Richard completed his PhD: Acute Hypoxia & Exercise Metabolism in Type 2 Diabetes (University of Brighton) in 2009. Following an RAE funded research position at Brighton, Dr Mackenzie took up a lectureship at the University of Westminster in 2008 before his moved to University of Roehampton to take up a Readership in Insulin Resistance and Metabolism. Dr Mackenzie is also Research Director for the Sport & Exercise Science Research Group at Roehampton University.

Dr Mackenzie is often employed to work as a consultant to a variety of companies, offering advice, measurement and analysis of human metabolism. Examples include BBC 2 Horizon and Mediwise, where he acts as a consultant on the development and testing of a novel glucose-monitoring device for the improved management of diabetes.

Positions Held

2015 - present:
Reader, Insulin Resistance & Metabolism
2008 - 2015:
Senior Lecturer in Cell Physiology & Metabolism, Dept. of Biomedical Sciences, University of Westminster
2005 - 2008
Research Physiologist - Environmental Physiology & Type 2 Diabetes

Ph.D., University of Brighton, 2009
Title: Hypoxia & Contraction Improve Insulin Sensitivity (SI2*) but not Glucose Effectiveness (SG2*) in individuals with Type 2 Diabetes

Dr Mackenzie's research interests are to understand the role of fat, glucose and protein metabolism in both health & disease physiology. More specifically, Dr Mackenzie's research areas include:

• Muscle metabolism in health, obesity and diabetes
• Role of obesity in insulin resistance and metabolic disease
• The hematological and muscular adaptions to acute hypoxic (altitude)

Dr Mackenzie is currently investigating the role of a novel inositol hexakisphosphate (IP6) kinase 1 (IP6K1) and the inositol pyrophosphate, IP7 in Akt/PKB inhibition and reduced insulin signaling.

His research is very much concentrated on health and muscle metabolism and takes two main focuses; 1) insulin (PI3-k/PKB) and contraction (AMPK) stimulation of GLUT-4 translocation in type 2 diabetes and 2) myostatin signaling / regulation and skeletal muscle protein synthesis and breakdown (atrophy). Dr Mackenzie's research uses hypoxic & exercise stimuli to invoke alterations in glucose, fat and protein metabolism in muscle and whole body. An overview of the cell-signaling mechanisms allied to his research aims are shown below:

Mackenzie, R. Akt/PKB Activation & Insulin Signaling: A novel insulin signaling pathway in the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity: Targets and Therapy Diabetes Metab Syndr Obes. 2014 Feb 13;7:55-64

• The inhibitor effects of inositol hexakisphosphate (IP6) kinase 1 (IP6K1) on Akt signaling and insulin resistance in pre-diabetics
• Effects of novel exercise interventions on whole body insulin sensitivity
• Inositol hexakisphosphate (IP6) kinase 1 (IP6K1) and its novel role in protein synthesis and Akt signaling in health and disease.

Dr Mackenzie is actively recruiting for self-funded PhD students for 2015 in the areas of type 2 diabetes, glucose & exercise metabolism.

Dr Mackenzie's research is aligned to the areas of obesity, fat and glucose metabolism in type 2 diabetes. Richard often advocates that sometimes what we see in diseased states is the often the opposite in the elite athlete. For this reason, Dr Mackenzie also investigates fuel metabolism in the elite athlete. Dr Mackenzie is frequently invited to talk at national and international conferences (Endocrine & American Thoracic Society) on his work and gets regularly media requests to discuss his research. These include BBC Radio 4 and the BBC2 Horizon 'Sugar vs. Fat' debate.

Dr Mackenzie has also worked with semi-elite and elite endurance athletes including the three-time Paralympic medalist, Tim Prendergast.