All trainees are required to present their research at the Tuesday CNRC Postdoc Research Seminar. Monthly lectures are given on scientific and professional development topics relevant to the training of postdocs in nutrition from leading experts in the field. A monthly journal club led by the trainees addresses critical advances in nutrition and biomedical research.
- Location: Fomon Conference Room, USDA/ARS Children’s Nutrition Research Center
- Date/Time: Tuesdays, noon to 1 p.m.
- Seminar Course Leader: Nancy.Moran@bcm.edu
- Program Coordinator: CNRCPostdocAdmin@bcm.edu
View the complete 2026-2027 schedule
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Sept. 8 | “Welcome to the 2026-27 CNRC Postdoc Program and Tips for Giving a Great Talk” Nancy E. Moran, Ph.D., USDA/ARS Children’s Nutrition Research Center, BCM |
| Sept. 15 | Journal Club Deependra Kaji Thapa, Ph.D. Titus Sombuor, Ph.D. |
| Sept. 22 | Seminar “Matrix cage: a novel platform for continuous metabolic phenotyping of group-housed mice” Yuhan Shi, Ph.D. |
| Sept. 29 | Seminar “Measuring the prevalence of dramatizing language in childhood obesity research” |
| Oct. 6 | “Workshop on How to Submit External Postdoc Funding Proposals in the CNRC” LaTonya Beavers & Rabab Saab, CNRC Grants and Contracts |
| Oct. 13 | Journal Club Olivia Charlotte Robertson, Ph.D. Rita Wang, Ph.D. |
| Oct. 20 | Seminar “The association of psychosocial factors with fruit and vegetable intake following a game-based nutrition intervention” Titus Sombuor, Ph.D. |
| Oct. 27 | Seminar “Active immunization against GLP-1 and GIP to treat and prevent obesity” Weisheng Lu, Ph.D. |
| Nov. 3 | “The Job Hunt – Combining Your Online Search with Real-life Networking” Lindsey Cauthen, Ph.D., Career Development Center, Ofc of Ed Affairs, BCM |
| Nov. 10 | Journal Club Yuhan Shi, Ph.D. Ana West, Ph.D. |
| Nov. 17 | Seminar “A mixed-methods investigation of Hispanic fathers' participation in the Papás Saludables, Niños Saludables Program” Ana Alvarez, Ph.D. |
| Nov. 24 | No Seminar Thanksgiving Week |
| Dec. 1 | “Defining Independence to Effectively Mentor Junior Scientists” Fred A Pereira, Ph.D., Director of Mentoring and Prof Dev, Grad School Biomed Sci, BCM |
| Dec. 8 | Journal Club Weisheng Lu, Ph.D. Hong Zhou, Ph.D. |
| Dec. 15 | Seminar “Rigor, reproducibility, and transparency in science” Olivia Charlotte Robertson, Ph.D. |
| Dec. 22 | No Seminar Week of Christmas & New Year’s Day |
| Dec. 29 | No seminar Week of Christmas & New Year’s Day |
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Jan. 5 | Professional Development Seminar |
| Jan. 12 | Journal Club Jieyi Meng, M.D. Julia Salamat, Ph.D. |
| Jan. 19 | Seminar “Food noise differences between treatment-naïve and treatment-exposed children: cross-sectional analysis in pediatric patients” Rita Wang, Ph.D. |
| Jan. 26 | Seminar “Environmental manipulation of spinach flavonoids” |
| Feb. 2 | “Effective Fellowship Writing Strategies” Smita Jha, Ph.D., Office of Training Grants and Fellowships, Grad School Biomed Sci, BCM |
| Feb. 9 | Journal Club Katelyn Senkus, Ph.D. Samuel Jesse, Ph.D. |
| Feb. 16 | Seminar “Transferring receptor binding valency governs the circulating half-life and weight-loss efficacy of Fc-FGF21 in TfR-humanized mice” Hong Zhou, Ph.D. |
| Feb. 23 | Seminar “Metabolic mechanisms underlying the divergent effects of glucagon during fasting versus insulin secretion” Jieyi Meng, M.D. |
| March 2 | “Motivating Yourself and Others – Building Self-Efficacy” Evelin Young, Ph.D., Office of Postdoctoral Affairs, BCM |
| March 9 | No Seminar Spring Break Week |
| March 16 | Journal Club Mounika Kandukuri, Ph.D. Thirupathi Reddy Mokalla, Ph.D. |
| March 23 | Seminar “Carotenoids and cardiometabolic health during pregnancy and infancy” Katelyn Senkus, Ph.D. |
| March 30 | Seminar “Fuel up for life: working with coaches in rural communities to promote healthy eating among high school students” |
| April 6 | Professional Development Seminar |
| April 13 | Journal Club Sara Vivatson, D.O. |
| April 20 | Seminar “Novel mouse models enabling locus-specific manipulation of DNA methylation” Julia Salamat, Ph.D. |
| April 27 | Seminar “Longitudinal association between muscle mass laterality and neurodegenerative disease” Deependra Kaji Thapa, Ph.D. |
| May 4 | “Life after Your Postdoc Training – CNRC Alumni Postdoc Panel Discussion” |
| May 11 | Journal Club Carley Lutzow, Ph.D., MPH Shreya Verma, Ph.D. |
| May 18 | Seminar “Examining diurnal patterns of bone turnover in children with disrupted sleep” Sara Vivatson, D.O. |
| May 25 | Seminar |
Recorded only with the speaker's permission. Lectures prior to Dec. 13, 2022 were not recorded.
Monthly Journal Clubs
CNRC postdocs, faculty, and staff participate in the monthly Journal Club program to review recent research findings. Four different thematic Journal Clubs are offered: Translational Metabolism and Digestive Diseases; Interdisciplinary Genetics; Neuroregulation of Metabolism, and Behavioral Basis of Energy Balance.