The EDESIA supervisory pool is composed of members of partner institutions across the Norwich Research Park, from senior investigators to early career researchers. Examples of supervisors within the EDESIA community are provided below and are listed according to partner institution. This list of researchers is not exhaustive and is expected to grow through the duration of the programme.

All students will be supported by an experienced mentor in their initial year to help with the selection of rotations and training. During their substantive PhD project, students will have a supervisory team with at least two academics, with the possibility of additional supervisors at the student’s request (e.g. for gender balance or additional expertise).

Primary supervisors will be expected to have significant research funding and a track record of research outputs. They will also have excellent records of supervision and training, including in Equality and Diversity.

University of East Anglia (UEA)

  • Dr. Yongping Bao | Reader
    Research Area – Cancer Studies
  • Prof. Tracey Chapman | Professor of Evolutionary Genetics
    Research Area - Effects of diet, sexual selection and sexual conflict on lifespan and life history in model fruit fly systems
  • Prof. Ian M Clark | Professor of Musculoskeletal Biology
    Research Area - The role of diet-derived bioactives in cartilage homeostasis and osteoarthritis
  • Dr. Rose Davidson | Lecturer in Nutrition and Biomedicine
    Research Area – Nutrition and Preventive Medicine
  • Prof. Andrew Fearne | Professor of Value Chain Management
    Research Area - Food supply chains and purchasing behaviour
  • Dr Jelena Gavrilovic | Senior Lecturer in Cell Biology
    Research Area - Human inflammatory conditions in ex vivo systems; mechanisms underpinning healthy and pathological tissue responses
  • Prof. Simone Immler | Professor of Genetics and Reproduction
    Research Area – Organisms and the Environment
  • Dr. Gwen Le Gall | Lecturer in Nutritional Biochemistry
    Research Area – Nutrition and Preventive Medicine
  • Prof. Anne Marie Minihane | Professor of Nutrigenetics
    Research Area - apoE genotype, n-3 fatty acids and cardio-metabolic and cognitive health
  • Prof. Maria O'Connell | Professor of Cell Biology
    Research Area - Investigating plant natural products as therapeutics and nutraceuticals in inflammation
  • Dr. Derek Warren | Associate Professor in Pharmacology
    Research Area – Molecular and Tissue Pharmacology
  • Prof. Ailsa Welch | Professor of Nutritional Epidemiology
    Research Area – Effects of Nutrition on Ageing

John Innes Centre (JIC)

  • Dr Janneke Balk | Project Leader
    Research Area - Iron metabolism in plants and microbes, including iron biofortification of wheat to improve human nutrition
  • Prof. Ant Dodd | Group Leader
    Research Area – Genes in the Environment
  • Prof. Claire Domoney | Head of Department, Metabolic Biology
    Research Area - Legume seed quality; genetics; germplasm diversity; crop relevant traits; protein, starch and micronutrients; nutritional effects
  • Prof. Cathie Martin FRS | Project Leader
    Research Area - Specialised metabolism in plants, Chinese Traditional Medicine, nutritional analysis of plant-based foods, plant breeding, plant genomics
  • Prof. Anthony Maxwell | Project Leader, Dept Biological Chemistry
    Research Area - Galleria mellonella as a model to study the impact of antibiotics and microbiota therapies on the human gut microbiome
  • Prof. Tony Miller | Senior Scientist, Metabolic Biology Department
    Research Area - Plant nutrition and biofortification; rhizosphere nutrient cycling; plant nitrogen physiology; membrane transporter proteins
  • Prof. Anne Osbourn FRS | Project leader, JIC; Director, NRP Industrial Biotechnology Alliance
    Research Area - Plant natural products – biosynthesis, function, mechanisms of metabolic diversification, and metabolic engineering
  • Prof. Lars Ostergaard | Group Leader
    Research Area – Genes in the Environment
  • Dr David Seung | Project leader
    Research Area - Investigating molecular mechanisms of starch synthesis in plants and their applications in crop improvement
  • Prof. Cristobal Uauy | Project leader
    Research Area - Wheat genetics and genomics to enhance protein and micronutrient content in the grain

Quadram Institute Bioscience (QIB)

  • Dr Cathrina Edwards | Career Track Research Leader
    Research Area - Manipulating plant food structure to optimise the bioaccessibility of starch and other nutrients in pulses
  • Dr Brittany Hazard | Group Leader
    Research Area – Improving the Health Impact of Wheat Starch
  • Prof. Nathalie Juge | Research Leader
    Research Area - Role of host and dietary glycans in the interaction between gut microbes and the host
  • Dr Paul Kroon | Research Leader
    Research Area - Interaction of dietary polyphenols with the gut microbiota and host and benefits to cardiometabolic health
  • Dr Stephen Robinson | Research Leader
    Research Area - Gut Microbes and Health; specifically related to vascular health and cancer
  • Dr Maria Traka | Deputy Head of Food Databanks National Capability; Research Leader
    Research Area - Food composition, dietary assessment and metabolic monitoring, effect of food on metabolism, disease prevention, clinical studies
  • Dr Frederick Warren | Career Track Research Leader
    Research Area - Structural analysis and digestion of fermentable carbohydrates
  • Prof. Peter Wilde | Research Leader
    Research Area - Physico-chemical mechanisms controlling the breakdown and digestion of food structures and impact on health