Past Lab Members
Former Graduate Students
R. Chris Skinner, PhD obtained his BS from West Virginia Wesleyan College in Exercise Science. Following his undergraduate studies, Chris completed his MS in Exercise Physiology at WVU. Chris' master's work focused on the effect of aerobic exercise training on a comorbid state of metabolic syndrome and chronic anxiety. Following the completion of his MS, Chris began his doctoral studies with Dr. Tou. Chris' PhD focused on repurposing apple pomace, a waste byproduct from apple processing, as a novel aid for pediatric non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Over the course of his doctoral studies, Chris won numerous awards at research conferences and published several papers on his findings. Chris is currently Assistant Professor of Health Science at University of the Ozarks. He maintains a close working connection with the Tou Lab.
Joseph Gigliotti, PhD completed undergraduate, master's, and doctoral studies
with Dr. Tou. Over the course of his time at WVU Dr. Gigliotti evaluated the protein
quality and safety of krill protein concentrate during his MS and focused on nutritional
interventions for polycystic kidney disease for his doctoral work. Following the
completed of his PhD, Dr. Gigliotti worked as a NIH T32 postdoctoral fellow at the
University of Virginia School of Medicine. His post-doc continued his work
in studying renal health. Since 2016, Dr. Gigliotti has been an Assistant Professor
of Physiology at Liberty University (VA) where his research focuses on immunopathology
of heart and kidney disease. Dr. Gigliotti remains an active collaborator with the Tou Lab, providing expertise in histology, renal physiology, nutritional biochemistry, and immunology.
Kaitlin Maditz, PhD, RD completed her BS, MS, and PhD at WVU, with her PhD being
completed under Dr. Tou. Kaitlin studied nutritional interventions for polycystic
kidney disease, focusing on the potential of poly-unsaturated fatty acids as a
treatment. Kaitlin has enjoyed success in industry since the completion of her
doctoral studies. She is currently a Senior Medical Writer for medicalwriters.com.
Lauren Gibson, MS, RD completed her undergraduate and graduate studies at WVU. Under
Dr. Tou Lauren studied the role of poly-unsaturated fatty acids in treating splenic
and liver maladies associated with polycystic kidney disease. Lauren currently
works for the National Institutes of Health.
Stephanie Seem completed her BS and MS at WVU and her dietetic internship at the
University of Delaware. Stephanie is now a clinical dietitian in the ICU at Wake
Forest Baptist Medical Center.
Kayla Bridges, MS, RD completed graduate work with Dr. Tou. Her research focused
on the digestibility, tissue deposition, and metabolism of krill protein concentrate.
Kayla is now clinical dietitian specialist at Beaumont Children's Hospital in the
Department of Nephrology.
Other past graduate students include Maria Dalzot, MS, RD, Robin Lukas-Redding, MS,
RD, Stephanie Wright-Durbin, MS, RD, Heather Light, MS, Embedzayi Tsani, MS, and
Maggie Conde, MS.
Former Undergraduate Students
Elizabeth Cordonier was an undergraduate research student while completing her BS
in biochemistry at WVU. Elizabeth went on to obtain her PhD in Biochemical and
Molecular Nutrition at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and completed post-doctoral fellowship at the Baylor University College of Medicine. She is now an Adjunct Professor of Biology at Lone Star College in Houston and also works in the private industry.
Sundus Lateef was four-year intern in the Tou Lab. Sundus' undergraduate research focused on the effects of high-fructose corn syrup on the liver and brain, publishing articles in 2014 and 2017. Sundus participated in WVU's undergraduate research competition every year, placing 2nd in 2014, and 1st in 2016 and 2017. She also participated in Undergraduate Research Posters on the Hill in 2017 and was a Rhodes Scholar finalist in the same year. Sundus is currently pursuing her medical degree at WVU. Beginning in the fall of 2019, Sundus will begin a one-year research fellowship at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD.
Other past students have gone onto successful careers in the fields of dietetics,
medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, and industry.