Barile’s lab member wins 3rd place at RMI poster competition

Tian is a fourth year Ph.D. candidate in the Barile Lab. Originally from China, she joined UC Davis after obtaining her bachelor degree in Food Science and Technology from Jiangnan University. Her research interests are to understand the relationship between the chemical structure and biological properties of food components, especially the activity of functional carbohydrates as prebiotics, and to develop the efficient separation method for isolating the identified carbohydrates from complex food matrices. Her current research is related to identification and isolation of complex bioactive carbohydrate structures from various sources of food, including plants and dairy products. Tian’s poster, titled “Identification and Characterization of Potential Prebiotic Oligosaccharides in Coffee” was selected in 5th Annual Graduate Student Poster Competition hosted by the Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science. The poster presented the analytical characterization of functional carbohydrates in brewed coffee, providing new possibilities for developing next generation selective prebiotics. This year there were 16 research posters, making the competition intense. Posters were evaluated on the research’s significance and implications, presentation of poster and interaction with judges, who were mainly industry members. Congratulations Tian!