GGNB Symposium 2017 awards

2017 Graduate Group in Nutritional Biology Student Symposium

The Graduate Group in Nutritional Biology (GGNB) held the 6th annual Student Symposium on September 25th, 2017 at the Putah Creek Lodge. The GGNB Student Symposium gives students an opportunity to present their research findings at a professional meeting. Students gave presentations and attended poster sessions where they met with symposium attendees to discuss their research.

This year’s oral sessions were an exciting mix of topics, from supplementation of diets with specific ingredients and their effects on growth, cognition and health, to analysis of the microbiota and its potential impact on health. The poster sessions were also exciting, covering timely, and emerging research topics relevant to nutrition including studies on nutrition education, supplementation, gut microbiota, and micronutrient deficiencies. For the second year in a row, Mead Johnson Nutrition generously supported the conference and provided prizes for the best oral and poster presentations.

2017 GGNB Symposium awards went to:

  • Jennifer Taylor, Debbie Fetter, and Sika Kumordzie in the Poster Competition
  • Shannon McClorry, Vanessa Dunne-Castanga, and Gwen Chodur in the Oral Presentation Competition

Speakers included the below:

  • Yousef Al-Dashti - Effects of short-term dried plum intake on markers of bone resorption and vascular function in healthy postmenopausal women
  • Vanessa Dunne- Castagna - Milk secretory immunoglobulin A protects Lactobacillus reuteri from digestion and aids in colonization in vitro
  • Maku Ocansey - Pre- and Post-natal Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplements and Cognitive, Socioemotional and Motor Function in Preschool-aged Children in Ghana
  • Gwen Chodur - Assessing Food System Vulnerabilities: A Fault Tree Modeling Approach
  • Elizabeth Beals - Addition of milk fat globule membrane to a meal high in saturated fat attenuates soluble epoxide hydrolase upregulation in lymphocytes
  • Shannon McClorry - Anemia During Infancy Alters Systemic Metabolism in a Sex-Specific Manner
  • Ziwei Wang - (-)-Epicatechin Protects the Intestinal Barrier from High Fat Diet-induced Permeabilization: Implications for Steatosis and Insulin Resistance
  • Lauren Brink - Effects of Milk Fat Globule Membranes, and its various components, on neurologic development utilizing a postnatal rat pup supplementation model
  • Maciej Chichlowski, PhD, Mead Johnson Nutrition - Approaching Nature: Milk Fat Globule Membrane and Lactoferrin in Pediatric Nutrition

Poster presenters included:

  • Kendra Byrd, PhD - How genetics and intestinal health influence iron status in children: findings from a recent GGNB
  • Shara Sheldon, PhD - Investigating nutritional influences on neuropathic pain thresholds in horses diagnosed with trigeminal mediated headshaking
  • Riley Hughes - Impact of DNA extraction and 16S rRNA sequence analysis methods on observed microbial community structure
  • Harriet Okronipa - Sweet taste preference in Ghanaian preschool children: impact of randomization to a slightly sweet, lipid-based nutrient supplement during early life
  • Lisa Sawrey-Kubicek - Whole egg increases high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) levels in overweight postmenopausal women
  • Allison Stevens - Whole egg consumption does not alter expression of genes related to cholesterol homeostasis or inflammation in PBMC of overweight postmenopausal women
  • Chenghao (Trevor) Zhu - Short Term Fast Food vs. Mediterranean Diet Change the HDL Lipidome with Different Patterns
  • Deborah Fetter - Impact of Healthy Choices in Motion on Physical Activity Knowledge
  • Sika Kumordzie - The long-term effect of maternal and early childhood supplementation on growth and body composition at 4-6 years of age in Ghanaian children
  • Lyndsey Ruiz - Validity and reliability of a nutrition knowledge questionnaire for adolescents
  • Jennifer Taylor - Changes in lunchtime fruit and vegetable intake across the school week: Comparisons between school and packed lunches
  • Md Barkat Ullah - Effect of pre-and postnatal nutritional supplements on childhood illnesses in Bangladesh: a cluster-randomized effectiveness trial