Body macronutrient composition is predicted by lipid and not protein content of the diet.

ABSTRACT: Diet is an important determinant of fitness-related traits including growth, reproduction, and survival. Recent work has suggested that variation in protein:lipid ratio and particularly the amount of protein in the diet is a key nutritional parameter. However, the traits that mediate the link between dietary macronutrient ratio and fitness-related traits are less well understood. An obvious candidate is body composition, given its well-known link to health. Here, we investigate the relationship between dietary and body macronutrient composition using a first-generation laboratory population of a freshwater fish, the three-spine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus). Carbohydrate is relatively unimportant in the diet of predatory fish, facilitating the exploration of how dietary prote

SUBMITTER: Moatt JP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5723615 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature