Feihe Nutrition Laboratory

The mission of the Feihe Nutrition Laboratory at BIDMC at Harvard Medical School is to facilitate and support state-of-the art basic and translational research in the fields of nutrition, obesity, and healthy living. The Feihe Nutrition Laboratory was established in 2015 with a five-year, $4.5 million contribution from Feihe International, the leading producer and distributor of infant formula, milk powder, and soybean and walnut powder in China.

High-priority research areas include:

Nutrition for special dietary needs and vulnerable populations, including infants and children
Nutrition that fosters specific benefits (e.g., cognitive development and fitness)
Nutrition that addresses obesity and adult-onset metabolic diseases (e.g., adipocyte dysfunction, insulin resistance)
Use of social media and technology to enhance population-wide nutrition

Research in the Feihe Nutrition Laboratory was directed by the late George Blackburn, MD, PhD, until his death in 2017. Dr. Blackburn was the S. Daniel Abraham Professor in Nutrition Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Center for the Study of Nutrition Medicine in the Department of Surgery at BIDMC.

Research Team

Overseeing the research activities of the Feihe Nutrition Laboratory are Richard Cummings, PhD, Director of the Harvard Center for Functional Glycomics and Vice Chair of Basic and Translational Research in the Department of Surgery, and James Rodrigue, PhD, Vice Chair of Clinical Research in the Department of Surgery.

The research team includes Jin-Rong Zhou, PhD, Associate Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Nutrition Metabolism Laboratory in the Department of Surgery at BIDMC. His research focuses on identifying efficacious, safe nutritional and bioactive regimens for the prevention and therapy of cancer and other metabolic disorders, and the effects of bioactive components on blood glucose management.

Other members of the research team are: research dietitian Yu (Silvia) Fang, MSPH, RD, LDN, research scientist Peira Ling, MD, MS, and Camilla Martin, MD, MS, Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, a translational physician-scientist in Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine.

The Feihe Nutrition Laboratory is grateful to also have the expertise of Susan Kelly Blackburn, MD, Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine and an investigator in the Division of Nutrition at Harvard Medical School, and Mr. David Blackburn, President and CEO of SetPoint Health.

Current Research Areas

Major areas of research currently being conducted in the Feihe Nutrition Laboratory are:

The physiology and nutritional requirements of preterm or low-birthweight infants
Infant formula and diarrhea
Infant formula and constipation
Influence of goat milk consumption on glucose metabolism
Influence of goat milk consumption on digestive health
Nutritional support for cognitive development in children
Nutritional interventions for osteoporosis
Development of nutraceutical products and goat milk-based foods that improve diabetes management/blood glucose control

Researchers from Feihe International are also participating in these projects. In addition, the Feihe Nutrition Laboratory welcomes collaborators from the U.S. and abroad to participate in its research projects.

Pilot and Feasibility Program

The Feihe Nutrition Laboratory Pilot and Feasibility Program provides funding for young investigators who are transitioning to an independent line of research, or established investigators with novel ideas in the areas of nutrition, obesity, and healthy living. It is anticipated that these awards will lead to exciting, innovative ideas for new products and technologies. W. Allan Walker, MD, Director of the Division of Nutrition at Harvard Medical School, is the first award recipient for his project, “The impact of breast milk on premature intestinal bacterial colonization.”

Feihe Nutrition Laboratory

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