About Us
Steven Frese, Ph.D.
Dr. Frese is an Associate Professor in the Department of Nutrition at the University of Nevada, Reno and holds an appointment at the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine.
Dr. Frese earned his doctorate at the University of Nebraska,
Lincoln and completed postdoctoral training at the University of California, Davis. From 2015-2020, he led
Research and Development at Evolve Biosystems, Inc (Now Infinant Health, Inc) and helped develop and
launch their flagship
product in neonatal nutrition. In 2022, he received the University of Nevada
Foundation Early Career Innovator Award.
Dr. Frese's research is centered on the human gut microbiome and its inhabitants. Our work at the University
of Nevada, Reno examines how diet, food science, and biotechnology can be leveraged to meaningfully improve
human health and nutrition.
Follow Dr. Frese's publications on Google Scholar.
Nadini Haththotuwe-Gamage, Ph.D.
Nadini H. Gamage is a postdoctoral researcher, having completed her Ph.D. at the University of Nevada, Reno. She earned her master's degree in Biochemistry from the University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, where she studied th effect of dietary polyphenols on diabetes and worked to develop cinnamon-based nutraceuticals. During her Ph.D she studied the stability and absorption of food-derived microRNAs in mammals, as well as the effect of a protein rich diet on host physiology and metabolism. She is interested in research that combines nutrition, molecular biology, and the gut microbiome, to understand how bioactive dietary components influence host metabolism and physiology. She is excited to build on her previous research by investigating how dietary glycans shape the gut microbiome and influence host physiology and metabolism. Outside of research, she enjoys hiking, cooking, and reading.
Elisa F Reis, M.S.
Photo and bio coming soon.
Other Members of the Lab
Han Yi (Microbiology undergraduate student)
Karter Conway (Microbiology and Biotechnology double-major)
Lab Alumni
Subash Kethavath, MSc DVM. Subash completed his MSc in Animal and Rangeland Science in Dr. Frese's lab and is now working as a practicing Veterinarian in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Bryce Hunt, BSc.
Jared Lewis, BS.
Jaiden Christopher, BS. Jaiden is now a Biochemistry Ph.D. student at UNR.
Joseph Lee, BS. Class of 2027 at UNR Medical School.
Zahra Alipour, MS. Now working at the State of Nevada
Irene Richardson, MS; PhD student in UNR's Biochemistry Graduate Program
Chandler Zundel, MS. Now an RDN with US Veteran's Affairs
Hatice Duman, doctoral student at Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University in Canakkale, Turkiye
Paul Scheen Stribling (Undergraduate student, Microbiology & Immunology)
Abdullah Mahmud (Undergraduate student, Biochemistry). Now pursuing his PharmD at Oregon State University.
Md. Al-Mamun (MS Student, Nutrition). Now pursuing a PhD in Nutrition at University of Tennessee Knoxville
Odunayo Abiodun (MS Student, Nutrition).
Karla Flores Martinez (PhD student, Cellular Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology, UNR)
Shawn Haugabook Swanson (BS, Biotechnology)
Matthew Bolino, MS, PhD - Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Florida.