Tooyib is a Ph.D. Candidate in Exercise Physiology. He is from Nigeria where he obtained his medical degree at the University of Lagos in 2011, a post-graduate diploma in education from Ahmadu Bello University Zaria in 2017, and a master’s degree in Physiology from Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto in 2019. He is currently studying erectile dysfunction and vascular dysfunction associated with atherosclerosis in the integrative neurovascular physiology lab under Dr. Justin La Favor.

When Tooyib is not in the lab, he enjoys spending time indoors watching his favorite TV shows and playing chess either on board or online.

Paul is a doctoral student in the nutrition and food sciences Ph.D. program working under Dr. Berryman. Paul graduated with his B.S. in Exercise Science and M.S. in Exercise Physiology from the University of Kentucky. During his Master’s, Paul obtained plenty of teaching and research experience working under excellent faculty.  The experience encouraged him to purse a Ph.D. and make an impactful difference going forward. Paul’s long-term career goal is to work as an assistant professor, teaching and performing research.

In my spare time I enjoy hiking, rock climbing, traveling, weight lifting, paddle boarding, and long walks on the beach.

Jingjing is a doctoral student in the Nutrition and Food Science program working under Dr. Leqi Cui. Jingjing received her M.S. degree in Food Science from Shaanxi University of Science and Technology, China. During her master’s thesis, she worked on the factors that influence the physical and chemical stabilities of lipids in oil-in-water emulsion. After graduation, she joined Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences as an assistant researcher to work with the analysis of the volatile compounds of spicy plants. Now she is focusing on the edible film based on pea protein and trying to apply various methods to improve the mechanical, gas/moisture-barriers properties of edible film, and finding out the underlying mechanism of film formation. She feels that pursuing her Ph.D. at FUS is a precious experience and will help her to gain more skills to further pursue her academia career.

Saurabh is a doctoral student in the Nutrition and Food Science program working under the supervision of Dr. Ravinder Nagpal. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI), Karnal (India) in the subjects of Dairy Technology and Dairy Microbiology, respectively. During his master’s thesis, he worked to develop the miniaturized, user-friendly, instrument-free and point-of-need colorimetric tests for detection of E. coli and coliforms in milk. Thereafter, he gained three years of industrial experience in India’s largest dairy cooperative “AMUL” before joining as a scientist at his alma mater in 2018. He feels that pursuing his Ph.D. from FSU will hone his academic and research skills in the field of nutrition and food science, which will be helpful for his career progression in future.

Saurabh enjoys spending time with his loved ones, listening to music, and watching movies in his spare time.

I am a doctoral student studying nutrition and food science under the mentorship of Dr. Gloria Salazar. I earned my Bachelor of Science in Nutrition Sciences and Master of Science in Health Sciences in Nutrition both from Tabriz University of Medical Sciences. My main research area includes studying the role of nutrition in chronic disease management.

Family is the most priority in my life and I like to spend most of my time with my family. In addition, traveling is very enjoyable for me. In sports, I am very interested in cycling and swimming. In art, I am interested in music, singing and dancing.

Grant received his BS and MS in Exercise Physiology at Southern Connecticut State University, where his major focus was athletic optimization and the study of specific neuromuscular contributions to exercise performance. Grant has dual interests in high performance populations and mitigation of atrophic and neurogenerative disease. He is passionate about translational research and enjoys recruiting both applied models with human subjects and more basic animal / cell culture models to investigate the changes from exercise and nutrition intervention at both functional and molecular levels.

In his free time, Grant enjoys lifting weights, enjoying the outdoors, cooking and trying new cuisine, meditating, and spending time with his loved ones. His philosophy is that to “keep the gifts you have, you must be willing to share them with others,” thus encouraging an attitude of service and compassion with people in his life.

Joe is a doctoral student pursuing a Ph.D. in Nutritional Sciences under the guidance of Dr. Jennifer Steiner. He received his M.S. in Exercise Physiology at Kent State University under Dr. Adam Jajtner, where he investigated human performance and immunological responses to acute high-volume resistance exercise with ergogenic aids. During his time at FSU, he has shifted his research focus to the basic sciences in rodent models, observing the effects of alcohol consumption on skeletal muscle protein synthesis. Following his Ph.D he plans to continue his career in academia, and has an interest in the development of therapeutic modalities utilizing his research experience.

Is an identical twin to his brother Nick. Enjoys spending time in the weight room, at a pond fishing, or at home playing video games when not in lab.

Cesar is a doctoral student in the Exercise Physiology program working under the mentorship of Dr. Robert Hickner. Cesar earned B.S. and M.S. degrees in Kinesiology at The University of Texas at El Paso, where he conducted clinical and biochemistry techniques to investigate the effects of exercise and diet interventions on peripheral insulin sensitivity and skeletal muscle metabolism. After completion of his Ph.D., Cesar plans to pursue post-doctoral training and a research career in academia to study the role of exercise on energy metabolism and insulin resistance.

Gwoncheol is a doctoral student in the Nutrition and Food Science Ph.D. Program under the supervision of Dr. Ravinder Nagpal. Gwoncheol graduated with his B.S. in Food Science and Technology in 2018 and M.S. in Food Science and Biotechnology in 2020 from Sejong University, Korea. He is eager to find out more about the underlying mechanisms that induce changes in the gut microbiota and the consequences of microbial changes. He wants to suggest therapeutic strategies through the modulation of gut microbiota for various diseases. Following his Ph.D., he will continue to grow his research network, adroitly utilize various tools that can modulate the gut microbiome and attain a comprehensive understanding of modulation through a postdoctoral research position.

Gwoncheol has traveled to more than 20 countries on four continents in the past five years. He enjoys experiencing various forms of life and cultural diversity. In his spare time, Gwoncheol loves exploring nice places and new cafés in Tallahassee and enjoys plays and classical performances.

Aida is a Ph.D. student in Exercise Physiology. She is from Iran where she obtained her bachelor’s in radiology at Medical University of Kurdistan in 2016. She is currently working in Dr. Michelle Parvatiyar’s lab. The lab’s research is focused on how remodeling of proteins in the cardiac sarcolemma influences cardiac function as well as the development of cardiometabolic disease. Their research also examines immune signaling and metabolic pathways in order to have a better understanding the factors affecting the communication between adipocytes and cells in the heart.

In her free time, Aida enjoys watching movies, swimming, rowing, and singing. She loves spending time with her best friend who is her husband too!

Chunya is a doctoral student in Nutrition and Food Science under the supervision of Dr. Qinchun Rao. She graduated from Jiangnan University in 2019 and earned her master’s degree in Nutrition and Food Science in 2021 from Florida State University. In her master’s project, Chunya focused on plant protein functionality. Chunya’s career goal is to become a faculty at a research university and assist students in developing their potential future.

Chunya enjoys listening to music, boating, traveling, and cooking in her spare time. She has practiced the violin for 20 years and this will be her lifelong love.

Abigail came to FSU from West Virginia University, with a masters degree in Exercise Physiology to work with Dr. Jennifer Steiner. She completed her masters degree on the Effects of Obesity, Chronic Stress, and Exercise on Pancreatic Health and will be working with skeletal muscle and acute and chronic alcohol while at FSU.

Abby is a weightlifter and enjoys anything that involves the outdoors. She loves all dogs and enjoys photography.

Yaqi is a doctoral student in Nutrition and Food Science program under the guidance of Dr. Qinchun Rao. After receiving her bachelor’s degree in Food Quality and Safety at Jinan University (China) in 2019, she completed her master’s degree in Nutrition and Food Science at Florida State University in 2021. Yaqi worked on the development of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for the detection of finfish tropomyosin for her master’s project, which has the potential to fight seafood fraud and improve food safety. She desires to continue her research career in academia.

Tribulation produces perseverance, and perseverance produces character, and character produces hope. Hope, does not disappoint us.