MyAge has been delighted to support nine early career researchers to present their research at conferences during the summer and autumn of 2025. Exercise physiologist, Dr Amanda Veiga Sardeli, used her award to attend The Physiology of Obesity: From Mechanisms to Medicine, a Physiological Society meeting for early career researchers, organised by Dr Peter Aldiss (University of Nottingham) and Dr Craig Doig (Nottingham Trent University).
Dr Sardeli presented: Is the exercise-related improvement in glucose metabolism in older adults dependent on an increase in muscle mass and reduction in fat mass? A systematic review and meta-analysis on behalf of a University of Birmingham team that includes fourth year medical students. The comprehensive research explored the relationship between 20 immune-metabolic adaptations via exercise training in older adults. One of its mechanistic findings was the dependence of losing fat mass to improve glucose control with the practice of aerobic training, but not with the practice of resistance (strength) training.
The team’s work has recently been published in Ageing Research Reviews.
Dr Sardeli said, “This conference was an excellent opportunity to expand my network in the area of obesity research and gain insights useful for career development, such as potential research funding sources and new methodologies.
Furthermore, there were some very useful talks on how microbiome-driven pathways can alter metabolic health in behavioural interventions such as diet and exercise.
I am applying for research fellowships to investigate the effects of exercise in immunity and body composition in older adults living with obesity and diabetes and have now started to explore the new BBSRC network in Gut-Immune-Brain Axis (GIBAnet).
Alongside all the new connections, a great outcome from the conference is that I applied for a position on The Physiological Society’s scientific committee and will serve in this role for the next three years.”
Find out more about Dr Sardeli’s research:
Sheldon R, Gan A, Tasong J, Yap A, Ahmad M, Hernandes Júnior PR, Viswanathan K, Setti NSM, Jarman O, Hoque-Uddin S, Banerjee T, Turner JE, Jones SW, Sardeli AV. Exercise-induced inflammatory and metabolic adaptations in ageing: A meta-analytic compendium. Ageing Res Rev. 2026 Jan;114:102974. doi: 10.1016/j.arr.2025.102974.
Dr Amanda Veiga Sardeli, University of Birmingham