09/20/2026
Wow. Wow. Wow!! KNSM doctoral student Savanah Knezek —AND BLACKCAT ALUMNA—had THREE abstracts selected for oral presentations and EARNED an ESPEN travel grant for one of the conference's top-scoring entries.
THIS GIRL IS IMPRESSIVE and her BLACKCAT ROOTS RUN DEEP!
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CTRAL (Center for Translational Research in Aging and Longevity - Texas A&M University) is heading to Berlin this week for the annual European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (ESPEN) conference, joining 4,500 scholars from around the world! Out of 1,500 submitted abstracts, only 50 were chosen for oral presentations—and CTRAL will be well represented across the schedule. KNSM doctoral student Savanah Knezek had three abstracts selected for oral presentations and earned an ESPEN travel grant for one of the conference's top-scoring entries. She’ll present her findings on "lower intracellular anabolic response to different protein sources in older females, using a novel stable isotope approach" in the main Convention Hall on Monday. Minchae "Chloe" Kang will share two abstracts during moderator-guided poster sessions, focusing on "suppressed BDNF response to walking exercise in patients with COPD" and "the effects of aging and s*x on metabolic and functional decline in COPD." Former CTRAL postdoctoral fellow Dr. Sarah Rice will give an oral presentation on her ESPEN fellowship research, "suppressed short-chain fatty acid kinetic response to sepsis." Visiting international scholars Drs. Ilaria Minussi and Benjamin Seethaler will also give oral presentations on their CTRAL work regarding "alterations in microbiota and microbial metabolite response to dietary fiber supplementation in COPD."
To top it off, Dr. Engelen was invited to deliver a 30-minute overview of her work on "metabolic mechanisms underlying different functional decline trajectories during healthy and diseased aging, and the role of biological s*x." Meanwhile, Dr. Deutz will moderate several sessions and present an educational session on “publishing high impact scientific manuscripts”, drawing on his experience as the former Editor-in-Chief of Clinical Nutrition.