Zempleni One of 8 UNL Faculty Named AAAS Fellow

Dr. Janos Zempleni
Dr. Janos Zempleni

The eight included Dr. Janos Zempleni Willa Cather professor of molecular nutrition and director of the Nebraska Center for the Prevention of Obesity Diseases through Dietary Molecules and of the Nebraska Gateway for Nutrigenomics, for distinguished contributions to nutrition research, including the understanding of human vitamin requirements, nutritional epigenetics, nutrient signaling mechanisms and the roles of bovine microRNAs.

Janos Zempleni's research centers on improving human nutrition. In 2014, he founded and now directs the Nebraska Center for the Prevention of Obesity Diseases through Dietary Molecules, a National Institutes of Health Center of Biomedical Research Excellence.

His research primarily focuses on microRNAs and he recently uncovered compounds that help regulate gene expression. They have been identified in numerous biological processes and linked to several diseases, including cancer and heart disease.

Recently, Zempleni's research team also discovered a new class of microRNAs in the human diet. The researchers learned that humans absorb these compounds from foods of animal origin and have uncovered important clues regarding their effects on fertility, body fat mass and other health processes. Their discovery is leading to a better understanding of dietary impacts on health.

Zempleni's earlier research played an important role in establishing national daily values for vitamin B2 and uncovered a link between riboflavin deficiency and impaired immune function.

"I'm very excited," Zempleni said of his AAAS recognition. "This is a great honor and will help my research program and the students and postdocs in my lab."

More details at: http://go.unl.edu/9tki