The Microbes and Social Equity working group, and The University of Maine Institute of Medicine present a virtual symposium on:
“Living in a Microbial World”
June 5 – 9th, 2023.
Format: virtual meeting, Zoom platform.
The full program is here.
Session 4: Elevating human nutrition and microbiome practice
Thursday, June 8th, 11 am – 2:30 pm EST. Event has passed, watch the recorded talks.
Human nutrition research and practice provides a unique opportunity to provide equitable health and microbiome care, to engage with various communities, and to foster interdisciplinary research and educational programs. Given the complexity and nuance of evidence-based nutrition delivery, the guiding ideas of MSE can provide a conceptual structure. This session will present research and case studies which create a professional development framework, such that attendees can envision and learn to apply the framework to their own project / professional development.
Hosts and organizers:
Dr. Ashley M. Toney, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute. Translational/Clinical Nutrition Researcher focused on Latine Health Disparities.
Dr. Patricia Wolf, PhD, RD, Assistant Professor at Purdue University. Microbial Metabolism, Health Disparities Research, Nutrition and Dietetics
Dr. Sue Ishaq, PhD, Assistant Professor of Animal and Veterinary Science, School of Food and Agriculture, University of Maine. Animal microbiomes, diet and gut, microbes and social equity.
Speakers, 11~12:00 EDT:
Dr. Babajide Ojo (Jide), PhD. is currently a Postdoctoral Research Scientist in the Pediatric Gastroenterology department at Stanford University School of Medicine. His PhD research used models of diet-induced obesity to understand how whole foods modulate the gut microbiome to enhance intestinal homeostasis and systemic outcomes. Through his ongoing Postdoctoral training, Jide is working to understand how patient-derived colon organoids may recapitulate the metabolic and epigenetic anomalies in the epithelia of pediatric ulcerative colitis patients. Jide’s long-term research goals seek to understand how nutritional and microbial factors impact the metabolic and regenerative fate of intestinal stem cells.
“Beyond Fiber: Microbial Regulation of Anti-Nutritional Factors in Whole Foods to Benefit Intestinal Physiology”
Dr. Saria Lofton, PhD, RN, Assistant Professor, University of Illinois at Chicago, College of Nursing
Dr. Annabel Biruete, PhD, RD, is an Assistant Professor and Registered Dietitian in the Department of Nutrition Science at Purdue University and an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Division of Nephrology at the Indiana University School of Medicine. Her broad clinical interest is nutrition in kidney diseases. Annabel’s research aims to study the effects of nutritional and pharmacological therapies for chronic kidney disease on the gastrointestinal tract and gut microbiome. Additionally, Annabel is interested in improving outcomes in the Hispanic/LatinX community living with chronic kidney disease, using language- and culturally-concordant lifestyle interventions.
Break, ~12:05 – 12:20 EDT
Panel Discussion, 12:20~13:00 EDT:
- Whole food strategy versus targeted interventions
- Multi-disciplinary approaches are needed. It’s not just about the gut- we need to think about other organs and systems biology, and with collaboration we can maximize animal use and preliminary data
- Challenges of working with clinical populations, recruiting, keeping people engaged
Break, 3:00 – 13:15 EDT
Breakout room discussions, 13:15 ~ 14:30 EDT:
- Going from animal models to humans
- Challenges of clinical study
- TBD
Related to this session, here are recorded talks from previous MSE events:
- “Diet, Microbial Metabolites, and Cancer Disparities”. Dr. Patricia Wolf, PhD, RD.
- “Broccoli Sprout Bioactives and Gut Microbiota: A Dietary Approach for Prevention and Management of Inflammatory Bowel Disease”, Dr. Yanyan Li, PhD
- “Exploring Health Determinants, Gut Microbiome, and Health Outcomes in Immigrants”, Dr. Dany Fanfan, Ph.D., MSN, RN
- “Intersecting breastmilk and microbiome science with the complexity of working with humans in a clinical context”, Dr. Merilee Brockway, PhD RN IBCLC
- “Teaching with microbes: Biopolitical lessons from fermentation”. Dr. Megan Carney, PhD.
- “The Human Microbiome and Health Inequities”, Dr. Katherine (Katie) Amato, PhD
- “It’s about time: ecological and eco-evolutionary dynamics across the scales”, Dr. Liat Shenhav, PhD
- “The human microbiome and cancer risk: setting the stage for innovative studies to address cancer disparities”, Dr. D. Armen Byrd, MPH, PhD