Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Public Health have discovered that the BRCA1 gene, known to be associated with breast cancer susceptibility, plays a critical role in the normal metabolic function of skeletal muscle. Dr. Espen Spangenburg, associate professor of kinesiology, and his laboratory team are the first to identify that the BRCA1 protein is expressed in the skeletal muscle of both mice and humans, and that it plays a key role in mitochondrial function, fat storage, and insulin responses in the skeletal muscle cells. The research is published in the Journal of Lipid Research.