Aaron Chacon, President

Kellea Nichols, Vice President
Kellea Nichols is a Nutritional Sciences PhD candidate in Dr. Frederique Yiannikouris’s Lab.  Her research is focused on how the soluble prorenin receptor (a component of the renin angiotensin system) plays a role in adipogenesis and blood pressure regulation in a sex-dependent manner.  Outside of the lab, Kellea is the Secretary of the Kentucky Advocates for Science Policy and Research.  During her free time, Kellea enjoys hiking, yoga, spontaneous traveling, and all movies.

Lucille Yanckello, Treasurer
Lucy Yanckello is a PhD student in Nutritional Sciences in the laboratory of Dr. Ai-ling Lin. Lucy’s research focuses on ways to prevent aging and age related diseases through dietary modulation of the gut microbiome. In addition to being an officer in NSPS, she is a T32 fellow on the NIDDK training grant. Outside of research, Lucy enjoys going to Orange Theory and binge watching reality TV shows.

Jackie Leachman, Secretary
Jacqueline Leachman is a 4th year PhD Candidate in Nutritional Sciences from Louisville, KY. She received her Bachelors of Science in Biology from the University of Kentucky in 2017. Shortly after, she began working in her current advisor's lab, Dr. Analia Loria, where she is working to elucidate the mechanisms linking Adverse Childhood Experiences with obesity in women. Her work so far has resulted in her being a 2021 American Physiological Society-Endocrinology & Metabolism Section Predoctoral Research Recognition Award Recipient. Outside of the lab Jacqueline serves as a member of Women in Medicine and Science, Trainee Subcommittee,  and board member for Science Sista's, NFP as well as NSPS. On her days off, Jacqueline enjoys being outside in nature and playing with her 2 cats!

Eleanor Johnson, President
Ellie Johnson is a Pharmacology PhD candidate in Dr. Eric Blalock’s lab. Her research focuses on how RNA degradation impacts gene expression in transcriptional profiling and how progesterone impacts the stress response in rats. Outside of the lab, Ellie is the External Affairs Officer for the Graduate Student Congress, Special Assistant to the Director of Legislative Affairs for the National Association of Graduate and Professional Students, and President of Kentucky Advocates for Science Policy and Research. When she is not on campus, she enjoys practicing martial arts, walking, and listening to podcast and audiobooks.

Courtney Turpin, Vice-President
Courtney Turpin is a PhD student in Nutritional Sciences in the laboratory of Dr. Brett Spear. Courtney’s research focus is the role of Zinc Fingers and Homeoboxes 2 (Zhx2) in obesity-derived fatty liver disease. In addition to being an officer in NSPS, she has also served as a member of the BGSO (Biomedical Graduate Student Organization) Community Outreach committee. Outside of research, Courtney enjoys running, reading, and spoiling her dog.

Adam Ghoweri, Secretary
Adam Ghoweri is a Pharmacology PhD student in the lab of Dr. Olivier Thibault. His research pertains to the role of calcium dysregulation as a precipitating factor in Alzheimer's disease progression. Using sharp electrode electrophysiology and calcium imaging, he studies neuronal physiology in the hippocampus of aging transgenic mice. He is a trainee on the Sanders Brown TRIAD T32 Training Grant and an active member of multiple organizations on campus such as NSPS, TRAC, a near peer mentor for STEPS, and BGSfN. When Adam isn't in the laboratory, he enjoys fitness, music, photography, and going on spontaneous adventures.

Courtney Turpin, President
Courtney Turpin is a PhD student in Nutritional Sciences in the laboratory of Dr. Brett Spear. Courtney’s research focus is the role of Zinc Fingers and Homeoboxes 2 (Zhx2) in obesity-derived fatty liver disease. In addition to being an officer in NSPS, she has also served as a member of the BGSO (Biomedical Graduate Student Organization) Community Outreach committee. Outside of research, Courtney enjoys running, reading, and spoiling her dog.

Eleanor Johnson, Vice-President
Ellie Johnson is a Pharmacology PhD candidate in Dr. Eric Blalock’s lab. Her research focuses on how RNA degradation impacts gene expression in transcriptional profiling and how progesterone impacts the stress response in rats. Outside of the lab, Ellie is the External Affairs Officer for the Graduate Student Congress, Special Assistant to the Director of Legislative Affairs for the National Association of Graduate and Professional Students, and President of Kentucky Advocates for Science Policy and Research. When she is not on campus, she enjoys practicing martial arts, walking, and listening to podcast and audiobooks.

Adam Ghoweri, Secretary
Adam Ghoweri is a Pharmacology PhD student in the lab of Dr. Olivier Thibault. His research pertains to the role of calcium dysregulation as a precipitating factor in Alzheimer's disease progression. Using sharp electrode electrophysiology and calcium imaging, he studies neuronal physiology in the hippocampus of aging transgenic mice. He is a trainee on the Sanders Brown TRIAD T32 Training Grant and an active member of multiple organizations on campus such as NSPS, TRAC, a near peer mentor for STEPS, and BGSfN. When Adam isn't in the laboratory, he enjoys fitness, music, photography, and going on spontaneous adventures.

Lucy Yanckello, Treasurer
Lucy Yanckello is a PhD student in Nutritional Sciences in the laboratory of Dr. Ai-ling Lin. Lucy’s research focuses on ways to prevent aging and age related diseases through dietary modulation of the gut microbiome. In addition to being an officer in NSPS, she is a T32 fellow on the NIDDK training grant. Outside of research, Lucy enjoys going to Orange Theory and binge watching reality TV shows.

Research Interests: Courtney Turpin is a PhD student in Nutritional Sciences in the laboratory of Dr. Brett Spear. Courtney’s research focus is the role of Zinc Fingers and Homeoboxes 2 (Zhx2) in obesity-derived fatty liver disease. In addition to being an officer in NSPS, she has also served as a member of the BGSO (Biomedical Graduate Student Organization) Community Outreach committee. Outside of research, Courtney enjoys running, reading, and spoiling her dog.

Our Graduate Students recently participated in the "Cards for Hospitalized Kids"  drive. They channeled their artistic sides and hand-made close to 50 holiday cards for sick children spending the holidays in the hospital.
The department is proud of its students for their time and kind efforts!

Healthy Halloween
Some of the officers met to provide FREE, healthy snacks to our community. They  reserved the table through UK to promote health and wellness in between the Kentucky clinic deli and the Nursing building.
They  had a lot of people stop by and thank them for putting this healthy event on. :)

Volunteermatch
In an effort to serve the community, at least once a month our NSPS Students work with Volunteermatch. In September they worked on a  community garden (Get in a Garden- Whitney Ave Garden) in support of Seedleaf, an organization that emphasizes nourishing communities by growing and sharing food. Our students cleared weeds, planted over 5 different kinds of vegetables and helped pick veggies and... had a blast doing it!

Walk to End Alzheimer's
The Walk to End Alzheimer's was a terrific event! $175,922.90 was raised for the cause. More than 1,100 participants, 130 teams! One of them was the Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences' department. Organized by our NSPS Association that was able to raise $325 for the cause. Weather was top as was the ambiance with all the participants. This is the 22nd year the Alzheimer’s Association has hosted the event. The walk’s success has supported research for a cure and helped over 100,000 families in the Chapter area living with Alzheimer’s. The Walk to End Alzheimer’s®, held annually in more than 600 communities nationwide, is the nation’s largest fundraiser for Alzheimer’s care, support, and research.

American Heart Association Heart Walk
Each year our department supports the American Heart Association Heart Walk by putting together a team. Through this, our team raises money and awareness about the critical issues regarding heart health here in the state of Kentucky. We would love to have faculty and staff involved and supporting our departmental team.

Remember, actual participation in the walk on May 14th 2016 at 9am at Keeneland is not necessary to join the team. All support, advocacy, and donations go much further. Please join today and share the link with anyone you think would be willing to help. The AHA has funded a lot of research here at UK so we should all make the effort to give back!

February 5, 2016
Our students had a great turn out for their NSPS monthly meeting! They had a guest speaker from UK's Proposal Development Office discussing grant writing. They are currently working on creating a workshop to be held at the end of the semester that will cover the following topics in "Scientific Communication": (1) how to give scientific seminars (2) how to prepare and write a thesis (3) how to communicate science to a non-science background audience.

The mission of the Nutritional Sciences and Pharmacology Students (NSPS) association is to promote social and academic camaraderie among graduate students in the Department of Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences. Our primary aim is to encourage participation in group activities both inside and outside the walls of the University of Kentucky. NSPS facilitates regular student-led meetings, community service opportunities, social events, and peer support for graduate students. Our goal is to aid in personal and professional growth and support students along their path to academic success.