So it has been quite a while since we have last updated our page, its no excuse, but it is because we have been very busy over the past several months adding new members to the lab group, finishing up research on some projects, and starting new projects to keep everyone busy. See below for the newest news.

Recent Activities

Since our last update we have had quite a few changes. First, congratulations to Dr. Macc Rigdon and Dr. Chevise Thomas for successfully completing their doctoral degrees. Macc’s research focused on the quality and safety of all beef semi-dry and dry products including summer sausages and salami with the use of high pressure processing. Upon graduation Macc accepted a position in Research and Development with Jennie-O, a subsidiary of Hormel.

Chevise’s research focused on the effective reduction of E. coli during the slaughter of small ruminates and the impact of antimicrobials on quality and safety of whole muscle, non-intact beef. After graduation Chevise accepted a position as Manager of Food Safety and Quality at FPL Foods LLC.

In the summer of 2018 Mr. Wil Sims joined our lab to pursue his master’s degree. Wil received his BS from Virgina Tech. Wil’s research focuses on the impact of heat stress and heat stress mitigation strategies for finishing beef cattle in the southeastern US and other subtropical environments. Wil is in the process of finishing the second year of his research and is excited to start sharing his results with the industry.

In the fall of 2019 Mr. Jamie Williams also joined our lab to pursue his master’s degree. Jamie is a recent graduate from the University of Georgia and we are happy he decided to stay at UGA and join our group. Jamie’s research will focus on further processing technologies to increase the utility, quality, and ultimately value of chicken afflicted with the wooden breast myopathy.

Dr. Luis Fernando Glassenapp de Menezes has also joined our group for the next year (February 2018-February 2019). Luis is a visiting faculty member from the Federal Technological University of Parana in southern Brazil where he is an Associate Professor of Beef Management Systems. While with us Luis is helping with our projects that focus on heat stress mitigation in beef finishing systems.

Other recent additions to our greater Meat Science group at UGA include the additions of Dr. John Gonzalez and Dr. Yao Yao. Dr. Gonzalez joined UGA in April 2019 and is an Associate Professor of Meat Science and Muscle Biology. John was previously on faculty at Kansas State University and focuses on the impact of muscle fatigue on animal well being and meat quality, influence of collagen on meat quality and tenderness, and the effects of nicotinamide riboside on muscle growth and development.

Dr. Yao joined UGA Animal and Dairy Science in the summer 2019 as an Assistant Professor and also holds appointment in the RBC group. Yao has a focus on molecular mechanisms that regulate muscle growth and development. We look forward to working with Drs Gonzalez and Yao and their contributions to our Meat/Muscle group. 

Drs. Stelzleni, Gonzalez, Liu, and Bart present at the 2019 Mini-Summit on Global Food Systems

Auburn University is currently hosting the 12th Mini-Summit on Global Food Systems which is a consortium of 6 universities including the University of Georgia, Auburn University, the University of Maryland, National Taiwan Ocean University, Shanghai Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and Shanghai Ocean University. The Mini-Summit covers a wide range of topics including food safety, risk assessment, nutrition, food technology, sustainability, and aquaculture, as well as, facilitates cooperation and collaboration with a broad group of scientists with differing backgrounds. In addition to those of us in Animal Sciences, Drs Yen-Con Hung and Kevin Mis Solval from UGA Food Sciences and Technology joined the summit and presented about their programs. (picture to come)

Recent Grants

Georgia Beef Commission logo

In 2018 and 2019 the Georgia Commodity Commission for Beef awarded the Stelzleni Lab two grants to study the impact of Heat Stress and Heat Stress Mitigation on beef cattle performance and meat quality during the finishing phase. In the southeast and other subtropical areas of the world heat stress (due to temperature and humidity) causes significant economic losses to the beef industry through reduced animal performance and meat quality. Identifying methods to effectively reduce or mitigate heat stress during the finishing phase of beef production may improve animal well-being, animal performance, and strengthen the beef industry in the southeastern US and subtropical environments.

USDA logo

​In 2019 the Stelzleni Lab (CoPI), working with Dr. Fanbin Kong (PI; UGA Food Science and Technology) were awarded a grant through USDA-NIFA Foundational Programs to study the impact of nanocellulose on gut physiology and digestion kinetics. The Stelzleni Lab will focus on using the pig as a model and study the impact of nanocellulose on gut physiology, microbiota, digestion, and growth.

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