Our Team

Ravinder Nagpal (a.k.a. Ravi), PhD. 

Lab Director and Team Leader

A food and gut microbiologist by training, Ravi is the biome geek and fanatic front-runner of the lab. His overarching mission is to decode how our diet and nutrition regulate and modulate our gut microbial communities and how this diet-biome interaction influences our health. Ultimately, he aims to excavate novel microbiome-based targets and therapies that can help prevent/ameliorate human diseases and improve human health and wellbeing. His lab specializes in executing multi-dynamic techniques including metagenomics, metabolomics, culturomics, and bioinformatics along with in-vitro, preclinical and clinical milieus to solve intricate mysteries of the extremely diverse and dynamic microbial world dwelling inside our gut. He has a wide array of multidisciplinary collaborations with experts in nutrition sciences, microbiology, cardiovascular biology, immunology, neuroscience, aging, and sepsis to gain comprehensive understanding of the role of our gut bugs in multiple aspects of our health.

More info on his scientific background and credentials can be found here:

Bio PubMed/NCBI Google Scholar ORCID Linkedin


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Saurabh Kadyan

Graduate Research Assistant & PhD Candidate

Saurabh earned his bachelor’s degree in Dairy Technology and master’s degree in Dairy Microbiology from the National Dairy Research Institute in Karnal, India. Following his studies, he gained three years of industry experience with India’s largest dairy cooperative, AMUL, before joining the institute as a scientist in 2018. His PhD research focuses on dietary interventions to improve gut and metabolic health across the lifespan, particularly in early life and old age, using preclinical animal models.

For any queries, feel free to reach out at sk21bq@fsu.edu  Google Scholar
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Gwoncheol Ian Park

Graduate Research Assistant & PhD Candidate

Ian holds a bachelor’s degree in Food Science and Biotechnology and a master’s degree in Human Microbiome from Sejong University in Seoul, South Korea. In the fall of 2022, he joined The Gut Biome Lab, bringing his expertise in bioinformatics. Since then, he has been dedicated to exploring the role of gut pathobiome signatures in the development of neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Alzheimer’s disease, using transgenic mouse models.

For any queries, feel free to reach out at gp21p@fsu.edu  Google Scholar
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Saiful Anuar Bin Singar

Graduate Teaching Assistant & PhD Candidate

Saiful is a doctoral student currently pursuing studies in nutrition sciences under the guidance of Dr. Ravinder Nagpal and Dr. Bahram Arjmandi. He holds a B.S. in Nutritional Sciences (with a Minor in Kinesiology) from The Pennsylvania State University and an M.S. in Human Nutrition from the University of Delaware. Saiful's research focuses on exploring the effects of functional foods and bioactive compounds on cardiometabolic health markers among the elderly.

For any queries, feel free to reach out at ssingar@fsu.edu  Google Scholar
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Cole Patoine

Graduate Teaching Assistant & PhD Student

Cole graduated from the University of New Hampshire in 2017 with a B.S. in Nutrition and Dietetics. He was then accepted into a dietetic internship and M.S. program at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, IL. After becoming a Registered Dietitian in 2021, Cole worked in an outpatient diabetes clinic before joining The Gut Biome Lab. Cole hopes to pursue further research on the gut microbiome and its role in the development and management of diabetes.

For any queries, feel free to reach out at cjp23a@fsu.edu 

 
 

 

 

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Gretchen Perez

Undergraduate, Nursing

"I aspire to help others to the best of my abilities, therefore, I constantly love learning and educating myself to understand the human body through every loop possible. Being part of this lab has been an amazing opportunity to grow and be more involved with my interests in health professions and food sciences!"

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Merrill Sonne

Undergraduate, Public health

"In the future, I hope to pursue a career in research, and under the guidance of Dr. Nagpal and the rest of the team, my interest in this field has grown dramatically. Through this opportunity, I have learned the relevance of the Gut biome in all aspects of life and hope to apply this knowledge in future endeavors within public health."

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Vijay Baksh

Undergraduate, Biology

"I plan to become a Forensic Biologist or perform research surrounding Molecular Biology. Through additional research, my fascination has been shaped towards Gut Microbiota and how it affects the numerous pathways within the body. I hope to not only expand my knowledge surrounding these topics but also grow as a person."

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Lauren Russell

Undergraduate, Biology & Public Health

Lauren joined the Nagpal lab in 2022 as a biology and public health major and is now studying genetic counseling at the University of Minnesota and Mayo Clinic.

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Savannah Stallings

Undergraduate, Lab assistant

 


Lab Alumni

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Núria Ibars

Youth & Science program, Barcelona

Visiting scholar, Summer 2024

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Katelyn Johnson

MS Thesis Student

Graduated in the Fall 2023

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Nate Hochuli

UG Honors Thesis and lab assistant

Graduated in the Summer 2023


 
 

 

 

The Gut Biome Lab


Lab members (Oct. 2024)
 

Dr. Nagpal and Ph.D. students (Oct. 2024)
 

Nate, Kate, and Saurabh 


Katelyn and Ian