Projects per year
Personal profile
Biography
Developing diet strategies to treat functional gut disorders
Dr Jane Muir is currently Head of Translational Nutrition Science in the Department of Gastroenterology, School of Translational Medicine, Monash University. She is a trained dietitian with a PhD in biochemistry and has over 20 years experience in the area of nutrition research.Her major research focus has been on the important role of fermentable carbohydrates in the health of the gastrointestinal tract.
Jane has made a major contribution to understanding the role of resistant starch (RS) (starch that escapes digestion in the small intestine) in gastrointestinal health. In 1990, she developed an assay for measuring levels of resistant starch in food. This assay was then validated and used to construct diets which differ greatly in levels of starch escaping digestion (ie. low and high in resistant starch). These diets were used in subsequent studies to investigate the physiological significance of including resistant starch in the diet.
Since 2001, Jane has worked in collaboration with the Gastroenterologist- Prof Peter Gibson.
This position provided her with the opportunity to develop and extend her research in the area of carbohydrates in the gut further, while strengthening the role of Nutrition and Dietetic research in the clinical setting.
Her primary focus has been assisting with the development of new diet therapies to treat and control diet-related gastrointestinal dysfunction.
A major focus of their research involved a new area of carbohydrate research involving poorly absorbed short chain carbohydrates (called FODMAPs).
FODMAPs stands for Fermentable Oligo- Di- and Mono-saccharides And Polyols). FODMAPs are found in a wide variety of foods and include; excess fructose (in pears, apples), sugar polyols (sorbitol and mannitol in stone fruits and artificial sweeteners), lactose (in milk), fructans and fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS) (rye, artichoke, garlic, onions) and galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS) (stachyose, raffinose, in legumes and nuts).
Jane has helped to establish the laboratory techniques to quantify the FODMAP sugars in foods.
The group have now started assembling, for the first time, comprehensive FODMAP food composition tables, which has been essential for their research into studying the physiological effects of these sugars in the gastrointestinal tract.
These FODMAP food composition tables are also essential for designing new diet strategies for the treatment of gastrointestinal symptoms associated with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is the most common disorder seen in gastroenterological practices and affects 1 in 7 Australians.
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Research area keywords
- Carbohydrates
- Gastrointestinal Function
- Dietary Fibre
- FODMAPS
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
Projects
- 17 Finished
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Atmo bar : Development of Atmo Cereal bars
Gibson, P. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Muir, J. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Yao, C. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & So, D. (Chief Investigator (CI))
18/10/21 → 17/10/22
Project: Research
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Using dietary therapy to slow the progression of diabetic kidney disease
Snelson, M. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Coughlan, M. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Ekinci, E. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Baqar, S. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Muir, J. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Kellow, N. (Chief Investigator (CI))
3/05/21 → 31/12/24
Project: Research
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Creating an evidence base for clinical care: A randomized controlled study examining the efficacy of the low FODMAP diet for the relief of gastrointestinal symptoms in endometriosis.
Muir, J. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Burgell, R. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Varney, J. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Moore, J. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Morrison, M. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Fisher, J. (Chief Investigator (CI))
1/06/20 → 1/06/20
Project: Research
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The impact of day-time and night-time endurance exercise on gastrointestinal integrity, functional responses, symptoms, and systemic endotoxin and cytokine profiles - A laboratory controlled mechanistic exploration of circadian variation influences in ultra-endurance athletes.
Da Costa, R. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Gaskell, S. (Project Manager), Muir, J. (Associate Investigator (AI)) & Burgell, R. (Associate Investigator (AI))
4/02/19 → 31/12/19
Project: Research
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Ingestible capsules for sensing gut metabolites
Kalantar-zadeh, K. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Gibson, P. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Muir, J. (Chief Investigator (CI)), McSweeney, C. S. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Hebblewhite, M. (Associate Investigator (AI)) & Berean, K. J. (Associate Investigator (AI))
1/01/19 → 1/01/21
Project: Research
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GASTRODIET 2023, an international meeting on food, diet and gastrointestinal health, held 18–20 October 2023 at Monash University Prato Centre, Prato, Italy
Muir, J. G., Jul 2024, In: JGH Open. 8, 7, 2 p., e13106.Research output: Contribution to journal › Editorial › Other › peer-review
Open Access -
Is the Mediterranean Low Fodmap Diet Effective in Managing Irritable Bowel Syndrome Symptoms and Gut Microbiota? An Innovative Research Protocol
Kasti, A. N., Katsas, K., Petsis, K., Lambrinou, S., Synodinou, K. D., Kapetani, A., Smart, K. L., Nikolaki, M. D., Halvatsiotis, P., Triantafyllou, K. & Muir, J. G., 23 May 2024, In: Nutrients. 16, 11, 16 p., 1592.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Other › peer-review
Open Access5 Citations (Scopus) -
Recommendations for the Use of Dietary Fiber to Improve Blood Pressure Control
Jama, H. A., Snelson, M., Schutte, A. E., Muir, J. & Marques, F. Z., 1 Jul 2024, In: Hypertension. 81, 7, p. 1450-1459 10 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review Article › Research › peer-review
13 Citations (Scopus) -
Review article: Current status and future directions of ingestible electronic devices in gastroenterology
Thwaites, P. A., Yao, C. K., Halmos, E. P., Muir, J. G., Burgell, R. E., Berean, K. J., Kalantar-zadeh, K. & Gibson, P. R., Feb 2024, In: Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics. 59, 4, p. 459-474 16 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access18 Citations (Scopus) -
A novel Monash Pouch diet in patients with an ileoanal pouch is tolerable and has favorable metabolic luminal effects
Ardalan, Z. S., Yao, C. K., Green, K., Probert, C., Gill, P. A., Rosella, S., Muir, J. G., Sparrow, M. P. & Gibson, P. R., Dec 2023, In: JGH Open. 7, 12, p. 942-952 11 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access8 Citations (Scopus)