Lab Members

Current Students

Cassondra Saande – PhD Candidate

“My initial research projects focused on the impact of whole egg consumption on maintenance of vitamin D status in rodent models of type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Our work has demonstrated that consumption of a whole egg-based diet may be more effective in maintaining circulating concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D than an equivalent amount of supplemental vitamin D3 type 2 diabetic rats. We are currently working on a follow-up study to determine the minimal amount of dietary whole egg required to maintain vitamin D homeostasis. These initial studies led to another project focused on the impact of dietary whole egg on insulin sensitivity and insulin signaling in a rodent model of obesity and type 2 diabetes. In addition, I am currently working on a study investigating whole eggs and egg components (i.e. egg protein and choline) as a dietary strategy to prevent hyperhomocysteinemia, an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease”.

  • USDA National Needs Graduate Fellowship Recipient
  • 2017 Young Investigator Award Recipient (Egg Nutrition Center)
  • 2018 David R. Griffith Research Award Recipient.
Amanda Bries – PhD Student

“My research interests are in identifying the role dietary components have on markers of disease. Currently, my research involvements are in identifying circulating microRNAs following the consumption of dietary whole egg. These findings will aid in determining the role whole egg-derived microRNAs play in the anti-obesogenic effects of animals with T2D. Additionally, I will be investigating the impact of polycystic ovary syndrome on methyl group metabolism to further understand the ramifications and possible dietary intervention strategies”.

  • 2018 Presidential Graduate Student Scholar
  • 2016 College of Human Sciences Research Assistantship Recipient
Joe Webb – PhD Student

Major Professor – Dr. Matt Rowling

” Joe currently studies the neurological changes in the brain during healthy aging to better understand how neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease affect the brain. He is currently examining how special diets high in Vitamin D, such as whole egg, influence gene expression in the brain using animal models and cell culture. Joe’s future plans include combining his passions of neurobiology and computer science to create tools to improve the efficiency of biological research. In his free time, Joe enjoys working on his motorcycle, programming, kayaking, and hiking! “
  • 2017 NSF Graduate Research Fellow
Paige Curry – Undergraduate Student
  • Nutritional Sciences – 2019
  • Louise Rosenfeld Undergraduate Research Intern – Summer ‘2018
Chloe Petrik – Undergraduate Student
  • Dietetics -2019
  • Louise Rosenfeld Undergraduate Research Intern – Fall ‘2018
Cora Arnold – Undergraduate Student
  • Nutritional Sciences – 2019
Brooke Vogel – Undergraduate Student
  • Dietetics -2019
  • Louise Rosenfeld Undergraduate Research Intern – Spring ‘2019
Laura Guzman – Undergraduate Student
  • Biology/Pre-Dental – 2019

Previous Students

Dr. Samantha Pritchard

PhD, Nutritional Sciences – 2018
Impact of whole egg consumption and maintenance of vitamin D homeostasis in disease
Post-Doctoral Associate (NIH T32-funded) at the Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology at the University of Minnesota Medical School.