About
Interdisciplinary
Bárbara Baquero
Professor, Health Systems and Population Health
PhD, Health Behavior, San Diego State University
MPH, Health Promotion, San Diego State University
BA, Clinical Psychology, Universidad Rafael Urdaneta
206-685-5052
Faculty PageDr. Baquero is a social and behavioral scientist who researches the design, implementation, and evaluation of health promotion and prevention interventions in community settings, focusing on increasing access to healthier foods and active transportation. Her research intersects community-engaged approaches, intervention research, and implementation science towards advancing health equity for Latinos and immigrant communities.
Karin Bornfeldt
Professor, Medicine, Division of Metabolism, Endocrinology and Nutrition
Professor, Laboratory Medicine and Pathology
PhD, Pharmacology, University of Linköping (Sweden)
Dr. Bornfeldt’s research is devoted to cardiovascular complications associated with diabetes, and her group uses a combination of human studies and research on mechanistic mouse models. Her current work is focused on the role of triglyceride-rich lipoproteins in cardiovascular risk associated with diabetes in youth and adults.
Lingtak-Neander Chan
Professor, School of Pharmacy
PharmD, University of Washington
BS, Pharmacy, Northeastern University
BS, Toxicology, Northeastern University
206-543-7987
Faculty PageDr. Chan’s primary research focus is on the absorption kinetics of micronutrients and drugs after bariatric surgery and other GI tract repairs. Other key areas of interest include micronutrient deficiencies, intestinal failure, critical care nutrition.
Laura den Hartigh
Research Associate Professor, Division of Metabolism, Endocrinology and Nutrition
PhD, Molecular, Cellular, and Integrated Physiology, University of California (Davis)
Dr. Laura den Hartigh studies mechanisms by which macronutrients such as glucose and fatty acids influence cellular metabolism in the settings of obesity and weight loss. Her lab uses cell culture models, including adipocytes and monocytes/macrophages, and mouse models of obesity to study the complex interplay between excessive nutrient ingestion, gut microbe health, adipose tissue metabolism, and systemic inflammation.
Mandy Fretts
Associate Professor, Epidemiology
PhD, Epidemiology, University of Washington
MPH, Epidemiology, University of Washington
BA, Anthropology, Amherst College
Dr. Fretts is a cardiovascular and nutritional epidemiologist with a focus on observational and interventional research aimed at improving cardio-metabolic health in underserved and rural communities (with a focus on American Indian communities). Her work aims to work with community partners to integrate observational and interventional research to mitigate obesity-related health disparities and improve health behaviors and health outcomes.
Jonathan Gorstein
Clinical Associate Professor, Global Health
PhD, Epidemiology, Nutrition, University of Michigan
BA, Evergreen State College
206-679-6373
Faculty PageDr. Gorstein’s interests include design and implementation of interventions to control micronutrient malnutrition in developing countries, development of rapid tools to access micronutrient status in low-resource settings, and support of national nutrition programs for planning and strategy formation.
Hyunju Kim
Assistant Professor, Epidemiology
PhD, Nutrition, Johns Hopkins University
MPH, Public Health Nutrition, University of California (Berkeley)
BA, Public Health, Johns Hopkins University
Dr. Kim is a nutritional epidemiologist with a strong interest in multiple omics data. Her research focuses on 1) building evidence on the role of diets for cardiovascular disease prevention, 2) identifying metabolic and biologic pathways that are modifiable by healthy diets, and 3) uncovering early biomarkers and therapeutic targets of cardiovascular disease and kidney disease.
Jason Mendoza
Professor, Cancer Prevention Program, Fred Hutch
Professor, Pediatrics, UW Medicine
Attending Physician, Pediatrics, Seattle Children's
Adjunct Professor, Health Systems and Population Health
MD, Rush Medical College (Rush University)
MPH, Health Services, University of Washington
BA, Biological Sciences, University of Chicago
206-884-1261
jason.mendoza@seattlechildrens.org
Faculty page (Fred Hutch) Faculty page (UW Medicine) Physician page (Seattle Children's)Dr. Mendoza’s research seeks to improve outcomes for childhood physical activity and nutrition among a variety of populations, including people living with diabetes, cancer patients, and cancer survivors through innovative behavioral interventions and policies in school and home settings. His work uses approaches that places participants’ cultures centrally in research interventions and assessments via bidirectional, participatory methods with children and families.
Jisun Paik
Research Associate Professor, Comparative Medicine
Director, Gnotobiotic Animal Core (GNAC)
PhD, Nutritional Sciences, University of Washington
RDN, Commission on Dietetic Registration
206-221-2682
Faculty Page Publications (PubMed)Dr. Paik studies vitamin A and its role in health and diseases. Her two main research areas are the role of retinoic acid, one of the metabolites of vitamin A, in reproduction and weight regulation and the role of gut microbiome in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). She is currently working on developing small molecules to treat obesity and to be used as male contraceptives. She also uses germ-free mice to determine whether specific microbiome can induce IBD and colon cancer, aiming to develop a bio-assay to predict colon cancer risk in IBD patients based on their microbiome.
Ulrike Peters
Research Professor, Epidemiology
Professor and Associate Director, Public Health Sciences Division, Fred Hutch
MPH, Epidemiology, University of North Carolina
PhD, Nutrition, University of Kiel (Germany)
MS, Human Nutrition and Food Science, University of Kiel (Germany)
206-667-2450
Faculty Page (epidemiology) Faculty page (Fred Hutch)Dr. Peters’ research focuses on the genetic epidemiology of colorectal cancer as well as the impact of race and ethnicity on colorectal cancer and other common diseases.
Yanfang Su
Assistant Professor, Global Health
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Evans School of Public Policy and Governance
ScD, Global Health and Population, Harvard University
MA, Tsinghua University
Dr. Su is a health economist with a focus on: 1) economic evaluation of healthcare systems, including analysis of equity, supply, demand, costs, and quality; 2) public policy evaluation; and 3) global health and population measures.