This project aims to clarify the risk of environmental chemicals affecting lipid homeostasis considering an ecosystem scale. We expect to identify conserved pathways in representatives of several metazoans and the role of epigenetic factors. The identification of conserved pathways will also contribute to a better understanding of the etiology of obesity in human populations.

Collectively, data indicates that obesogens impact lipid metabolism across phyla that have diverged over 600 million years ago. Thus, several key questions emerge: What is the taxonomic scope of lipid homeostasis perturbation by environmental chemicals? Are the observed effects transgenerational? What is the role of epigenetic modifications? To what extent obesogens impact ecological relevant endpoints? We set to address these questions here using a combination of tools and representative aquatic animal species from a broad phylogenetic sampling.