Alumni

Michelle Mosley, PhD, MS, CBA

Title & Employer
ASenior Service Fellow at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Dissertation Topic
Cultural Attitudes and Beliefs on Diet and Physical Activity in Early Adolescents and Influence on Weight and Dietary Intake

Academic Highlights

• Mosley, M.A., Andrade, F.C.D., Aradillas-Garcia, C., Teran-Garcia, M. Consumption of Dairy and Metabolic Syndrome Risk in a Convenient Sample of Mexican College Applicants. Food and Nutrition Sciences, 2013, 4, 56-65.
• Teran-Garcia, M., Andrade, F.C.D., Vazquez-Vidal, I., Mosley, M., Medina-Cerda, E., Aradillas-Garcia, C. FTO genotype is associated with body mass index and waist circumference in Mexican young adults. Open Journal of Genetics, 2013, 3, 44-48.

Chloe Panizza, PhD, MHlthProm, PostgradDip Dietetics, BSc Nutrition

Title & Employer
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Population Sciences in the Pacific Program, University of Hawaii Cancer Center.

Dissertation Topic
Exploring the influence of diet quality on visceral adiposity and risk of mortality from non-communicable diseases among adults in the US.

Academic Highlights

• Panizza, C.E.; Wong, M.C.; Kelly, N.; Liu, Y.E.; Shvetsov, Y.B.; Lowe, D.A.; Weiss, E.J.; Heymsfield, S.B.; Kennedy, S.; Boushey, C.J.; Maskarinec, G.; Shepherd, J.A. Diet Quality and Visceral Adiposity among a Multiethnic Population of Young, Middle, and Older Aged Adults. CDN (in press).
• Panizza, C.E.; Lim, U.; Yonemori, K.M.; Cassel, K.D.; Wilkens, L.R.; Harvie, M.N.; Maskarinec, G.; Delp, E.J.; Lampe, J.W.; Shepherd, J.A.; Le Marchand, L.; Boushey, C.J. Effects of Intermittent Energy Restriction Combined with a Mediterranean Diet on Reducing Visceral Adiposity: A Randomized Active Comparator Pilot Study. Nutrients 2019, 11, 1386.
• Zhao, C.; Panizza, C. Fox, K.; Boushey, C.J.; Byker Shanks, C.; Ahmed, S.; Chen, S.; Serrano, E.L.; Zee, J.; Fialkowski, M.K.; Banna, J. Plate Waste in School Lunch: Barriers, Motivators, and Perspectives of SNAP-Eligibile Early Adolescents in the US. J Nutr Educ Behav 2019, 51, 967-975.
• Panizza, C.E.; Shvetsov, Y.B.; Harmon, B.E.;Wilkens, L.R.; Le Marchand, L.; Haiman, C.; Reedy, J.; Boushey, C.J. Testing the Predictive Validity of the Healthy Eating Index-2015 in the Multiethnic Cohort: Is the Score Associated with a Reduced Risk of All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality? Nutrients 2018, 10, 452.
• Banna, J.C.; Panizza, C.E.; Boushey, C.J.; Delp, E.J.; Lim, E. Association between Cognitive Restraint, Uncontrolled Eating, Emotional Eating and BMI and the Amount of Food Wasted in Early Adolescent Girls. Nutrients 2018, 10, 1279.
• Panizza, C.E.; Boushey, C.J.; Delp, E.J.; Kerr, D.A.; Lim, E.; Gandhi, K.; Banna, J.C. Characterizing Early Adolescent Plate Waste Using the Mobile Food Record. Nutrients 2017, 9, 93.
• Harray, A. J.; Boushey, C. J.; Pollard, C. M.; Panizza, C. E.; Delp, E. J.; Dhaliwal, S. S.; Kerr, D. A. Perception v. Actual Intakes of Junk Food and Sugar-Sweetened Beverages in Australian Young Adults: Assessed Using the Mobile Food Record. Public Health Nutrition 2017, 20(13), 2300–2307.

Michael Cen Wong, PhD
Title & Employer                                                   
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Population Sciences in the Pacific Program, University of Hawaii Cancer Center. Dr. John Shepherd

Dissertation Topic
Using body shape from 3D optical imaging for health assessment

Why did you choose the PhD Nutrition Program at the University of Hawaiʻi at Manoa?
After spending a year working after college, I soon realized it would be difficult to get where I want to be without further education. When the opportunity came to pursue my PhD at UH Manoa, I left my life behind in California to follow my dreams and start a new life. Fortunately for me, things have fallen in place. I enjoy the work I’m doing, I have a great mentor, I made wonderful friends, and I have no regrets.

Academic Highlights

• Wong MC, Ng BK, Kennedy SF, Hwaung P, Liu E, Kelly N, Pagano I, Garber AK, Chow D, Heymsfield SB, Shepherd JA. Children and Adolescent’s Anthropometrics Body Composition from 3D Optical Surface Scans. OBESITY. Accepted, 2019. (top 5 manuscript and will be featured in the 7^th annual OBESITY Symposium)
• Bennett K. Ng, Markus J. Sommer, Michael C. Wong, Ian Pagano, Yilin Nie, Bo Fan, Samantha Kennedy, Brianna Bourgeois, Nisa Kelly, Yong E. Liu, Phoenix Hwaung, Andrea K. Garber, Dominic Chow, Christian Vaisse, Brian Curless, Steven B. Heymsfield, John A. Shepherd. Detailed 3D Body Shape Features Predict Body Composition, Blood Metabolites, and Functional Strength: The Shape Up Studies. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Accepted, 2019.

Jessie Kai, PhD
Title & Employer                                                   
Training and Extension Coordinator, Children’s Healthy Living Center, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa

Why did you choose the PhD Nutrition Program at the University of Hawaiʻi at Manoa?
I wanted to learn from and share with my community.

Academic Highlights
ARCS scholar

Lianger “Felix” Dong, PhD, MS

Dissertation Topic
I am interested in health benefits of probiotic foods and their effects on human gut.

Why did you choose the PhD Nutrition Program at the University of Hawaiʻi at Manoa?
My research during M.S. studying was involved with lactase treated dairy products using nanotechnology which is beneficial for lactose-intolerant costumers. This experience encourages me to focus on practical research based on an interdisciplinary knowledge of biological, physicochemical, and engineering science to improve the quality, nutritional profiles and safety of foods. Dr. Yong Li’s research projects discover potential antimicrobial, anticancer, or nutraceutical properties of local fruits, investigation of the effects of food derived bioactives on gut microbiota, and development of novel fast detecting techniques of food born pathogens. His research is very intriguing to me and matches my academic goal of providing potential solutions addressing food safety and human health problems. In addition, the courses and resources provided by the Nutrition PhD program at UHM are diverse and advanced. I chose UHM to continue my education in food science because I believe this is a great opportunity to gain professional knowledge and skills for my career and explore microbials, food, and their relationship to overall wellbeing.

Academic Highlights

• Dong JL, Yu X, Dong LE, Shen RL. In vitro fermentation of oat β-glucan and hydrolysates by fecal microbiota and selected probiotic strains. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture. 2017 Sep;97(12):4198-203.

Michelle Blas Laguana, PhD, MS

Dissertation Topic
Dietary Assessment of Children in Guam

Why did you choose the PhD Nutrition Program at the University of Hawaii at Manoa?
While living and working on Guam, I’ve been fortunate to work with faculty from the University of Hawaii at Manoa (UHM) and the University of Hawaii’s Cancer Center in various research and extension capacities, so to be able to further my studies and career at UHM felt like the natural choice.  I’ve enjoyed the various courses the intercollege PhD program has allows me to explore as well as the opportunities and support I’ve been given working in small class sizes with my peers and faculty. The mentorship and experience I have gained thus far has been very rewarding and I feel blessed to be in such a great learning environment!  I believe the knowledge and faculty mentorships I have gained here at UHM will help provide me with the tools to go back home and continue nutrition education and research with the ethnic populations of Guam.

Tharindu Malintha Gardi-Hewage, PhD, MS

Dissertation Topic
Environmentally sensitive transcription factors in the prolactin cell, gill and kidney of Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus)

Why did you choose the PhD Nutrition Program at the University of Hawaiʻi at Manoa?
During my Master’s degree, I studied marine life sciences and biomedical sciences. I was specialized in aquafeeds and nutrition. Therefore, the Ph.D. Nutrition program was most suited to me. It is an honor for me to be a part of HNFAS and work in a friendly environment. I work in the Laboratory of Fish Endocrinology and Environmental Physiology, where I will conduct experiments in understanding the effects of temperature on osmoreception using tilapia as a model animal and develop aquafeeds using locally available ingredients. I believe that the knowledge and experiences I gain from UH and the help and guidance from the faculty would make this work successful.

Academic Highlights

• Seale, Malintha, G. H. T., Celino‐Brady, F. T., Head, T., Belcaid, M., Yamaguchi, Y., Lerner, D. T., Baltzegar, D. A., Borski, R. J., Stoytcheva, Z. R., & Breves, J. P. (2020). Transcriptional regulation of prolactin in a euryhaline teleost: Characterisation of gene promoters through in silico and transcriptome analyses. Journal of Neuroendocrinology, 32(11), e12905–n/a. https://doi.org/10.1111/jne.12905
• Woo, Malintha, G. H. T., Celino-Brady, F. T., Yamaguchi, Y., Breves, J. P., & Seale, A. P. (2022). Tilapia prolactin cells are thermosensitive osmoreceptors. American Journal of Physiology. Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, 322(6), R609–R619. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpregu.00027.2022

Jonathan Bennett, PhD, MS

Dissertation Topic
Assessment of Hydration via Five Compartment Body Composition Methods

Why did you choose the PhD Nutrition Program at the University of Hawaiʻi at Manoa?
Working with John Shepherd and Steve Heymsfield (Pennington Biomedical Research Center, LA) provides invaluable experience and opportunities for us to develop research that further advances the understanding of body composition and its role in health and disease risk.

Academic Highlights

• Heymsfield SB, Smith B, Wong M, Bennett JP, Ebbeling C, Wong J M, … & Shepherd JA (2021). Multicomponent density models for body composition: Review of the dual energy X‐ray absorptiometry volume approach. Obesity Reviews, e13274.
• Bennett JP, Liu YE, Quon BK, Kelly NN, Wong MC, Kennedy SF, … & Shepherd JA (2022). Assessment of clinical measures of total and regional body composition from a commercial 3-dimensional optical body scanner. Clinical Nutrition.
• Bennett JP, Liu YE, Quon BK, Kelly NN, Wong MC, Leong L, … & Shepherd JA (2022). Three-dimensional optical body shape and features improve prediction of metabolic disease risk in a diverse cross-sectional sample of adults. Obesity.
• Cataldi D, Bennett JP, Quon BK, Liu YE, Heymsfield SB, Kelly TK, & Shepherd JA (2022). Agreement and precision of deuterium dilution for total body water and multicompartment body composition assessment in collegiate athletes. Journal of Nutrition.
• Bennett JP, Wong MC, McCarthy C, Fearnbach N, Queen K, Shepherd JA, & Heymsfield SB (2022). Emergence of the adolescent obesity epidemic: five-decade visualization with humanoid avatars. International Journal of Obesity.