Shengmin Sang, Ph.D., a professor of functional foods and human health in A&T’s Center for Post-Harvest Technologies, has been chosen to serve as a member of the Integrative Nutrition and Metabolic Processes Study Section of the National Institutes of Health’s Center for Scientific Review, a great honor for scientists in this field.

His term as a member of the study section began July 1 and runs through June 30, 2024. Members are selected on the basis of their demonstrated competence and achievement in their scientific discipline as evidenced by the quality of research accomplishments, publications in scientific journals, and other significant scientific activities, achievements and honors.

Membership on the study section provides a unique opportunity for Sang to contribute to the national biomedical research effort. Study sections review grant applications submitted to the NIH, make recommendations on these applications to the appropriate NIH national advisory councilor board, and survey the status of research in their fields of science.

Thirteen eager teenagers from seven North Carolina counties participated in the 2020 4-H Leaders in Training (LiT) program, held virtually June 15-18.

LiT, a Cooperative Extension program that gives 4-H youth from limited resource communities the chance to learn leadership tactics and strategies, offered one-of-a-kind experiences for participants even though they couldn’t meet on campus this year, said Shannon Wiley, Ph.D., Extension 4-H youth development specialist.

Features of this year’s program included “Clover Night Live,” during which the teens participated in improvisational skits about civic engagement; computer coding using Scratch, which allows students to code animations and games; and Ag Chat, where the group discussed technology, careers in agriculture, and healthy lifestyles. LiT participants also developed “plans of action” to be used in their hometowns and counties.

Extension at A&T launched LiT in 2018, and 57 teens have completed the program.

Professor Salam Ibrahim, Ph.D., and Rabin Gyawali, Ph.D., of N.C. A&T and Hafize Fidan of the University of Food Technologies in Bulgaria have published a paper on the importance of good nutrition to maintain a healthy immune system to fight back in case of exposure to COVID-19.

The paper, “Self-Defense: A Practical Approach to Combatting COVID-19,” was published in the July edition of Acta Scientific Nutritional Health.

The authors provide an overview of why good nutrition is important for the immune system to function properly. They also offer their informed opinions on the role of human microbiota in creating a natural immunological defense system for combating COVID-19. The paper seeks to inspire scientists from other fields, such as nutrition immunology, to help provide consumers with a more global approach to fighting the pandemic.