Steven H. Zeisel, MD, PhD
Professor of Nutrition and Pediatrics
steven_zeisel@unc.edu
704-250-5003
Rm. 2301
Lab Website
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As the North Carolina Research Campus (NCRC) grows and more scientists and administrators move to Kannapolis, there is one face that has been here since the beginning. Founding NRI Director Steven Zeisel, MD, PhD, was a leader in this innovative venture before the first shovel hit the dirt. From the start, Zeisel was involved in building the dream of the NCRC, including its unique mission, novel approach to research, and distinguished team. Not only has he played an integral role alongside David H. Murdock in developing the vision of the Campus, he has also led the charge to seek scientific synergy between the best minds in nutrition research, through collaboration with the other NCRC organizations.
Under Zeisel’s leadership, this collaboration is the defining hallmark that will revolutionize the field of nutrition worldwide. Zeisel’s passion for the science of nutrition is evident throughout his distinguished career. He initially attended medical school at Harvard and completed his residency in pediatrics at Yale-New Haven Hospital. He earned his PhD in Nutrition from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1979.
After rising to the rank of professor at Boston University’s School of Medicine, Zeisel joined UNC-Chapel Hill’s faculty in 1990, becoming professor and chair of the UNC Department of Nutrition (the first department of nutrition in the country in both a school of public health and a medical school). In 1999, he was named Associate Dean of Research for the UNC School of Public Health. Later he began directing UNC’s Clinical Nutrition Research Unit (now called the UNC Nutrition Obesity Research Center). Subsequently, he was named a Kenan Distinguished University Professor of Nutrition & Pediatrics at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health and at the UNC School of Medicine in 2005.
Show MoreTeen Cognition Improves with Choline
February 1, 2016 • The Zeisel laboratory at the UNC Nutrition Research Institute (NRI) is well known for defining the importance of the nutrient choline in infant brain development. They discovered that choline in mother’s diet during pregnancy is extremely important for optimal brain development in her baby. But, is this the only time in life that choline can improve brain function? Could teenagers eat extra choline to help their school performance?
Mother's Diet Impacts Development of Baby's Brain
January 2, 2016 • Children of mothers whose diet during pregnancy was deficient in the essential nutrient choline have lower performance on cognitive tests. Cognition is rooted in the brain’s cortex, but a direct link between maternal dietary choline levels and cortical development in offspring had not been demonstrated. Experimental evidence of this link, and identification of a physiological mechanism, would greatly enhance our understanding of the importance of proper nutrition during pregnancy.
Preventing Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)
November 24, 2015 • From the desk of: David Horita, Ph.D.
THE STUDY
In a recently published paper1, NRI investigator Phil May and colleagues showed that the prevalence of fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) and partial fetal alcohol syndrome (PFAS) is two to three times higher than previously estimated.
Dr. May’s study differs from most FAS prevalence studies in its use of active case ascertainment testing methods to estimate prevalence. This technique includes developmental testing of the child and detailed one-on-one interviews of the mother. The interview questions covered alcohol use during pregnancy, but also asked questions related to secondary factors, such as overall drinking history, marital status; socioeconomic status, and diet/nutrition. This approach is much more labor-intensive than the more common survey approach that relies on self-reported alcohol use information. However, it is also more accurate: self-reported alcohol usage surveys often underestimate FAS because of the stigma of drinking during pregnancy.
Is Life Expectancy a Good Measure of Health?
October 27, 2015 • A recent, global study published in The Lancet (2015; 386, p.743-800) clearly emphasizes the importance of the latter referring to our quality of life. According to the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study, worldwide life expectancy at birth rose by 6.2 years between 1990 and 2013. However, these additional years come at a price as healthy life expectancy at birth increased by only 5.4 years over the same 13 year time span.
2020 Publications
2019 Publications
2018 Publications
2017 Publications
Contribution of Dietary Supplements to Nutritional Adequacy in Various Adult Age Groups.
Trimethylamine N-Oxide, the Microbiome, and Heart and Kidney Disease.
Reduced brain volume and impaired memory in betaine homocysteine S-methyltransferase knockout mice.
Astronaut ophthalmic syndrome.
Choline, Other Methyl-Donors and Epigenetics.