Members

Liping Zhao, PHD
Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
liping.zhao@rutgers.edu
848-932-5675
Affiliation: Director, IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Developing guild-based analysis for mining microbiome data; elucidating the role of gut microbiota in human metabolic diseases; developing gut microbiota-targeted interventions for metabolic diseases

Tracy Anthony, PHD
Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
tracy.anthony@rutgers.edu
848-932-6331
Affiliation: Rutgers Center for Lipid Research; IFNH Center for Human Nutrition, Exercise, and Metabolism
Research Interests: Regulation of metabolism and proteostasis by changes in nutrient supply; metabolic and molecular responses to exercise

Ayana April-Sanders, PhD, MPH
Instructor, School of Public Health
aapril@sph.rutgers.edu
732-235-8574
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Early origins of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases and the role of the gut microbiome and diet on these pathways

Gloria Bachman, MD, PHD
Professor, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences
Associate Dean of Women's Health; Director, Women's Health Institute
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
bachmaga@rutgers.edu
732-354-8461
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Research is geared to women and their obstetrical health

Tessa Bergsbaken, PHD
Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Institute for Infectious & Inflammatory Diseases
Rutgers New Jersey Medical School
t.bergsbaken@rutgers.edu
973-972-7933
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Examine the influence of the microbiome on the development of colorectal cancer

Nicholas Bello, PHD
Associate Professor, Department of Animal Sciences
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
ntbello@rutgers.edu
732-932-2966
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Neural control of diet selection, eating disorders, dietary supplements for appetite control

Debashish Bhattacharya, PHD
Distinguished Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
d.bhattacharya@rutgers.edu
848-932-6218
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Molecular evolution and functional analysis of corals and algae

Martin Blaser, MD
Director, Center for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine
Departments of Medicine and Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
martin.blaser@cabm.rutgers.edu
848-445-9834
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: To conduct metabolic studies with IFNH personnel in animal models related to obesity, diabetes, and autoimmunity

Paul Breslin, PHD
Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
pasb@sebs.rutgers.edu
848-932-6080
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health; IFNH Center for Human Nutrition, Exercise, and Metabolism
Research Interests: Oral perception, flavor, and their genetic bases; the role of chemical senses on regulatory physiology and metabolism

Christoph Buettner, MD, PHD
Professor and Chancellor Scholar, Department of Medicine
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
cb1116@rutgers.edu
914-439-8447
Affiliation: Rutgers Center for Lipid Research; IFNH Center for Human Nutrition, Exercise, and Metabolism; IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Explore the role of nutrient on adipose tissue function and brain inflammation and the unexpected role of the microbiome in this brain adipose

Sara Campbell, PHD, FACSM
Associate Professor, Department of Kinesiology and Health
School of Arts and Sciences
saracamp@kines.rutgers.edu
848-932-7036
Affiliation: Rutgers Center for Lipid Research; IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health; IFNH Center for Human Nutrition, Exercise, and Metabolism
Research Interests: Obesity and gut microbiome, dietary fat and intestinal integrity, exercise, omega-3s and inflammation

Shishir Chundawat, PHD
Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering
Rutgers School of Engineering
shishir.chundawat@rutgers.edu
848-445-3678
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Biosynthesis, deconstruction, and characterization of glycans, glycoconjugates, and glycan-enriched biomaterials for bioenergy, advanced biomanufacturing, and healthcare related applications

Mei Chung, MPH, PHD
Associate Professor of Public Health and Community Medicine
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Clinical and Preventive Nutrition Sciences, School of Health Professions, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Tufts University, School of Medicine
mei_chun.chung@tufts.edu
617-636-2966
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health

Paul Copeland, PHD
Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
paul.copeland@rutgers.edu
732-235-4670
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Study of the molecular basis for the dietary requirement for selenium

Carla Cugini, PHD
Assistant Professor, Department of Oral Biology
Rutgers School of Dental Medicine
carla.cugini@rutgers.edu
973-972-1931
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Molecular mechanisms that govern the in vivo inter- and intra-species interactions of key Gram negative pathobionts within the plaque biofilm

Rong Di, PHD
Associate Research Professor, Department of Plant Biology
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
di@sebs.rutgers.edu
848-932-6350
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Using C. elegans platform to screen and study plant-based natural products for their beneficial effects on diabetes, obesity, cancer and Alzheimer's disease

Maria Gloria Dominguez-Bello, PHD
Professor, Departments of Biochemistry and Microbiology and of Anthropology
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
mg.dominguez-bello@rutgers.edu
848-932-3500
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Childhood Nutrition Research; IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Microbiome assembly in early life, perturbations; microbiome degradation in urbanites; microbiome conservation

Jeanne Ferrante, MD, MPH
Professor, Family Medicine and Community Health
Director, New Jersey Primary Care Research Network
Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
ferranjm@rwjms.rutgers.edu
848-932-5252
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Influence of gut microbiome on obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer

Ronaldo Ferraris, PHD
Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Neurosceince
Rutgers Medical School
ferraris@njms.rutgers.edu
973-972-4519
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Role of differentiation in modulating plasticity of epithelial cells; fructose metabolism & obesity

Saum Ghodoussipour, MD
Assistant Professor of Surgery, Urologic Oncology
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
saum.ghodoussipour@rutgers.edu
732-235-7701
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Role of the microbiome in predicting response to cancer treatments and outcomes after surgery

Robert Goodman, PHD
University Professor
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
robert.goodman@rutgers.edu
848-932-3248
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Microbial ecology, environmental sustainability, virology

Jessie Yanxiang Guo, PHD
Associate Professor, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey
yanxiang@cinj.rutgers.edu
732-235-9657
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Relationship between gut microbiome and lung tumorigenesis

Max Haggblom, PHD
Distinguished Professor, Chair-Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
haggblom@rutgers.edu
848-932-5646
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Bioexploration, cultivation and eco-physiological characterization of novel bacteria. 'Unusual appetites' of microbes that metabolize toxic environmental pollutants

Arash Hatefi, PHD
Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmaceutics
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey
ahatefi@pharmacy.rutgers.edu
848-445-6366
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Cell-based targeted therapy of cancer; vector development for targeted gene transfer

Daniel Hoffman, PHD
Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
dhoffman@sebs.rutgers.edu
848-932-0272
Affiliation: Director, IFNH Center for Childhood Nutrition Research; IFNH Center for Human Nutrition, Exercise, and Metabolism; IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health; IFNH Center for Agricultural Food Ecosystems (RUCAFE)
Research Interests: Energy metabolism and body composition, human growth, international nutrition, and economic development

Qingrong Huang, PHD
Professor, Department of Food Science
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
qhuang@sebs.rutgers.edu
848-932-7193
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Food nanotechnology and biopolymers

Juana Hutchinson-Colas, PHD, MD
Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
hutchij2@rutgers.edu
732-986-2668
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health, IFNH Center for Human Nutrition, Exercise, and Metabolism
Research Interests: Urinary microbiome and effects on lower urinary tract symptoms

Kouichi Ito, PHD
Associate Professor, Department of Neurology
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
itoko@rwjms.rutgers.edu
732-235-5482
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Multiple Sclerosis, Neuroimmunology, Autoimmune disease, Immune tolerance, Neurodegeneration, Mucosal Immunology

Leonid Kagan, PHD
Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmaceutics
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey
lkagan@pharmacy.rutgers.edu
848-445-6365
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: PKPD modeling and simulation, pharmacometrics, population and physiologically-based modeling, disease progression, obesity, pain

Lee Kerkhof, PHD
Professor, Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
lkerkhof@rutgers.edu
848-932-3419
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Use of nucleic-acid based analyses to determine which microbes (prokaryotic, archaeal, and eukaryotic) are present/active in complex samples

Keerthana Kesavarapu, PHD
Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
kk1132@rwjms.rutgers.edu
678-469-0425
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: We are a multi-disciplinary team with a collaborative research program aimed at providing personalized and innovative care for patients with obesity

Jennifer Manuola
Executive Director Child Development Centers
Department of Psychology
School of Arts and Sciences
jennifer.manuola@rutgers.edu
848-932-8881
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health

Dominique Michaud, ScD
Professor of Public Health and Community Medicine
Tufts University, School of Medicine
dominique.michaud@tufts.edu
617-636-0482
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health

Joshua Miller, PHD
Professor, Chair-Department of Nutritional Sciences
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
joshua.miller@rutgers.edu
848-932-5428
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health; One Nutrition Program; IFNH Center for Agricultural Food Ecosystems (RUCAFE)
Research Interests: B vitamins (folate, B12, B6, B2), homocysteine, and one-carbon metabolism; vitamin D; cognitive function in older adults; microbiome

Tamara Minko, PHD
Distinquished Professor, Chair-Department of Pharmaceutics
Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy and EOHSI
minko@pharmacy.rutgers.edu
848-445-6348
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health

Christopher Molloy, PHD, RPH
University Professor
Rutgers Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy
chris.molloy@rutgers.edu
848-445-2675
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Translational application of microbiome research to create novel human diagnostics and therapeutics

Zhiping Pang, MD, PHD
Associate Professor
Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
pangzh@rwjms.rutgers.edu
732-235-8074
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Childhood Nutrition Research, IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health, IFNH Center for Human Nutrition, Exercise, and Metabolism
Research Interests: Central nervous mechanism of glucose like peptide 1 in control of energy homeostasis.

Peggy Policastro, PHD, RDN
Nutritionist, Rutgers Dining Services
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
peggyp@rutgers.edu
848-932-5447
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health; Culinary Health Program; IFNH Center for Agricultural Food Ecosystems (RUCAFE)
Research Interests: Food literacy in school aged children, dietary patterns of college students, and in behavioral economics

Nikolaos Pyrsopoulos, MD, PhD, MBA, FACP, AGAF, FAASLD, FRCP
Professor of Medicine and Chief of Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Rutgers NJ Medical School
pyrsopni@njms.rutgers.edu
973-972-5252
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Gastroenterology and Hepatology

Loredana Quadro, PHD
Professor, Department of Food Science
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
lquadro@sebs.rutgers.edu
848-932-5491
Affiliation: Rutgers Center for Lipid Research; IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health; IFNH Center for Childhood Nutrition Research
Research Interests: Maternal-fetal metabolism of vitamin A and its carotenoid precursor beta-carotene; microbiome of vitamin A deficiency

Sally Radovick, M.D.
Professor, Department of Pediatrics
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
The Child Health Institute of NJ
sr1123@rwjms.rutgers.edu
732-235-9524
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Control of growth and pubertal development of children and reproductive function

Ilya Raskin, PHD
Distinguished Professor, Department of Plant Biology
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
raskin@rutgers.edu
732-794-5600
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health; IFNH Center for Human Nutrition, Exercise, and Metabolism; IFNH Center for Agricultural Food Ecosystems (RUCAFE)
Research Interests: Effects of natural products on human health, metabolism and microbiome

Troy Roepke, PHD
Assistant Professor, Department of Animal Sciences
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
ta.roepke@rutgers.edu
848-932-9454
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health; Rutgers Center for Lipid Research
Research Interests: Interactions of steroids, high-fat diets, and endocrine disruptors on metabolism

Diana Roopchand, PHD
Assistant Professor, Department of Food Science
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
diana.roopchand@rutgers.edu
848-932-0248
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Dietary phytochemicals and bacteria involved in chronic disease prevention

Harini Sampath, PHD
Associate Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
harini.sampath@rutgers.edu
848-932-0266
Affiliation: Rutgers Center for Lipid Research; IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Lipid metabolism; mitochondrial function; oxidative stress; metabolic syndrome

Donald Schaffner, PHD
Distinguished Professor, Department of Food Science
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
don.schaffner@rutgers.edu
848-932-5411
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Predictive food microbiology and quantitative microbial risk assessment

Sue Shapses, PHD
Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
shapses@rutgers.edu
848-932-9403
Affiliation: Director, IFNH Center for Human Nutrition, Exercise, and Metabolism; Rutgers Center for Lipid Research; IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Energy metabolism, bone health, body composition and obesity; nutritional and endocrine factors contributing to chronic disease

Judith Storch, PHD
Distinquished Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
storch@sebs.rutgers.edu
848-932-1689
Affiliation: Rutgers Center for Lipid Research; IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Cellular lipid transport, structure and function of fatty acid-binding proteins

Paul Takhistov, PHD
Associate Professor, Department of Food Science
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
paul.takhistov@rutgers.edu
848-932-5478
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Engineering: Development of microfluidic devices and biosensors for microorganisms detection, non-thermal pathogens inactivation; nanotechnology in food processing, packaging and control

Erin Vogel, PHD
Associate Professor, Department of Anthropology and Center for Human Evolutionary Studies
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
erin.vogel@rutgers.edu
732-932-9277
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Studies on how environmental variation in habitat nutrient availability influences wild orangutan energetics and health

Fredric Wondisford, PHD
Professor, Chairman of Medicine and Chancellor Scholar
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
few11@rwjms.rutgers.edu
732-235-7201
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Regulation of gene expression by nuclear thyroid hormone receptors and control of hepatic glucose production (HGP) in health and disease

Guojun Wu, PHD
Research Associate, Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
gary.guojun.wu@rutgers.edu
848-932-6394
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: The gut microbiome and human health; mining high-throughput sequencing

Qing-Li Wu, PHD
Associate Professor, Department of Plant Biology
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
qlwu@sebs.rutgers.edu
848-932-6238
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Natural Products Chemistry related to pharmaceutics, nutrition and food science

Danyue Zhao, PHD
Post Doc Associate, Department of Plant Biology
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
daisydy.zhao@rutgers.edu
848-932-6251
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health
Research Interests: Elucidating the mechanisms on how dietary polyphenols help boost health and reduce risks of degenerative diseases, and their interactions with gut microbiota

Naisi Zhao, MHS, DrPH Candidate
Tufts University, School of Medicine
naisi.zhao@tufts.edu
443-854-2618
Affiliation: IFNH Center for Nutrition, Microbiome, and Health