Functional Food Center


Click Here to View Our Online Store


24th International Conference of FFC - 12th International Symposium of ASFFBC


Functional Foods, Nutrition and Chronic Diseases: Science and Practice


September 20-21, 2018, at Joseph Martin Conference Center at Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

Register Now


Conference Program


September 20, 2018

8:20-9:00 Registration

9:00-9:10 Welcome and opening remarks: Bioactive compounds: The key to functional foodsDanik Martirosyan, Co-chairman, PhD, Functional Food Center, Dallas, TX, USA

9:10-9:30 Tom O'Bryan, DC, CNC, Educator and Physician at the Dr.com, Celiac Disease/Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity, Autoimmunity, Functional Medicine, San Diego, CA, USA. The dangers of a Gluten-Free diet

Session 1: Functional Food Definition, Status, and Regulation. Session Chairs:  Dr. Debasis Bagchi and Dr. Danik Martirosyan

9:30-9:55 Willette Crawford, PhD, MPH, Principal Consultant and Owner at Katalyst Consulting LLC, Instructor at Northeastern University, San Francisco, USA. The FDA's Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA): the safety of functional and healthy foods and regulatory challenges

9:55-10:20 Debasis Bagchi, PhD, Professor, Department of Pharmacological and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Houston College of Pharmacy, Houston, TX, USA. Nutraceutical and functional food regulations in USA and Japan

10:20-10:45 Karen Lau, Senior Adviser Supplemented Food, Biosecurity Science, Food Science and Risk Assessment Directorate, Ministry for Primary Industries,  Wellington, New Zealand. Functional food regulation in New Zealand

10:45-11:10 Izabela Tanska, Food Law Advisor, IGI Food Consulting LLC, Food Safety & Regulatory Compliance Department, Warszawa, PolandDevelopment and marketing of new functional food products in the EU

11:10 11:30 Panel Discussion

11:30-11:40 Coffee Break

Session 2: Biomarkers, Bioinformatics, Bioactive Molecules for Development of Functional Foods. Session Chair: Dr. Jin-Rong Zhou, Co-chairman: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

11:40-12:05 Uma Naidoo, MD, Director of Nutritional and Lifestyle Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital (Mood-Food Expert), Instructor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA. "Your Brain on Food”: Implications for mental health

12:05-12:25 Leena Pradhan-Nabzdyk, PhD, Assistant Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School. Principal Investigator and Co-Director of Research Training Programs at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA. Systems biology and bioinformatics for development of functional foods

12:25-12:45 Tugba Yilmaz, Ph.D. Student, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA. Electrochemical response amplification of the redox molecules in the detection of biomarkers

Lunch: 12:45 -13:30

Session 3: Functional Foods Consumption: Product Development, Marketing and Consumer Acceptance. Session Chairs: Dr. Darin Detwiler and Ms. Victoria Pardo Uzitas

13:30-13:55 Ennio Avolio, PhD, Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.  Probiotics modify body weight together with anxiety states via pro-inflammatory factors in HFD-treated Syrian golden hamster

13:55-14:20 Victoria Pardo Uzitas, Managing Director, Food Science, Consumer Package Goods, UbiquityBiz, Carlsbad CA, USA. Creating Trends: How food companies are bridging scientific discovery and consumer need in the quest for the next great product

14:20-14:45 Darin Detwiler, LP.D., Assistant Dean, Professor of Food Policy and Regulatory Compliance, Northeastern University College of Professional Studies, Boston, MA, USA. Industry imperatives for implementing Blockchain as a tool for food authenticity: quality, safety, fraud, defense, and security

14:45-14:55 Coffee Break and Networking

Session 4: Functional Foods and Bioactive Compound(s): Prevention and Management of Non-communicable Diseases. Session Chairs: Dr.Amrendra  Ajay and Dr. Machelle Seibel

14:50-15:10 Gabriela Riscuta MD, CNS, Program Director, Nutritional Science Research Group, Division of Cancer Prevention, National Cancer Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD, USA. The effect of probiotics on cancer, mood and emotions: clinical trials and epidemiological studies

15:10-15:30 Kuhu Roy, PhD, Nutrition Consultant, Vadodara, Gujarat, India. The role of silymarin in the management of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: Time to clear the mist

15:30-15:55 Machelle Seibel, MD, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA. Foods and nutrition to help manage menopause

15:55-16:20 Amrendra K. Ajay, PhD, Department of Medicine, Renal Division, Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA USA. Functional food considerations for patients with chronic kidney disease

16:20- 16:45 Nilla Ghanei, PhD in Nutrition Sciences, The Harrison School of Pharmacy, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, USA. The effect of probiotic supplementation on clinical, endocrinal and immunological parameters in women with polycystic ovary syndrome

16:45-17:15 Session 5: Poster Session

17:15-17:30 Conference closing

17:30-19:30 Evening Networking Reception 
17:30-19:30
 Evening Networking Reception: On the evening of September 20, 2018, we will be holding an enjoyable networking opportunity with us at JM Conference Center from 17:30-19:30.  All attendees and speakers are welcome to come. This event will also be providing refreshments and appetizers, including beer, wine, champagne, Italian cheeses, salads, and more. Space is limited, and advance online registration is required. Please let us know if you are interested (ffc@functionalfoodcenter.com)

September 21, 2018

Session 6: Nutrition and Functional Foods for Patients with Prediabetes and Diabetes. Session Chairs: Dr. Bagchi and Dr. Harry Preuss

8:30-8:55 Harry G. Preuss, PhD, Professor, Department of Biochemistry, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, D.C, USA. Assessing aging paradox in circulating ALT of healthy volunteers over life span

8:55-9:20 Debasis Bagchi, PhD, Professor, Department of Pharmacological and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Houston, College of Pharmacy, Houston, TX, USA. Blood pressure interplay between dietary sugars and salt in diabetics

9:20-9:45 Manashi Bagchi, PhD, Cepham Research Center, Piscataway, NJ, USA; Dr. Herbs LLC, Concord, CA, USA. Protective efficacy of mango (Mangifera indica) and Mangigerin in pre-diabetics

9:45-9:55 Coffee Break and Networking

Session 7. Bioactive Compounds in Health and Disease: Session Chairs: Dr. Kanakaraju Kaliannan and Dr. Bernd Markert

9:55-10:20 Sheila Wicks, MD, MBA, Department of Pharmacy,  University of Illinois at Chicago, IL, USA; Department of Clinical Anatomy and Cell Biology, Rush University, Chicago, IL, USA. Resveratrol and dietary anthocyanins reduce osteoblast apoptosis, increase osteoblast proliferation, and reduce osteoclastogenesis in transgenic medaka

10:20 -10:45 Bernd Markert, PhD, Professor, Environmental Institute of Scientific Networks, Haren/Ems, Germany. Lithium as phase stabilizer for neurological diseases / effects on reduction of suicide rates, bipolar disorders, dementia, Alzheimer, and other mental related diseases

11:45 - 12:10 Nuria Martínez Saez, PhD, Research professor at Basque Culinary Center, Faculty of Gastronomic Sciences, Mondragón University, Spain. Teas and herbal infusions as sources of melatonin and other bioactive non-nutrient components 

12:10-12:35 Ruud Albers, PhD, CEO, Founder, NutriLeads Ingredients for Health, Wageningen Gelderland, Netherlands. Development of innovative natural immunomodulatory health ingredient from carrots.

12:35-13:00 Kanakaraju Kaliannan, MD, Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA. Multiomic and transgenic mouse technologies reveal elevated tissue omega-6/omega-3 ratio as a risk factor for chronic disease

Lunch: 13:00-13:45

Session 8: Current Research and Development of New Functional Food Products: Session Chairs: Ms. Sylvia Tam and Ms. Christy Kadharmestan

13:45-14:10 Gianluca Tognon, Founder, The Food Scientist, Gothenburg, Sweden. Is cheese a functional food?

14:10-14:35 Christy Kadharmestan, Senior Formulator, International Research & Development, Pharmavite LLC, Valencia, CA, USA. Contributing factors to future success of functional foods

14:35-15:00 Sylvia Tam, Founder and CEO, Beviva, Upland, CA, USA. Research, Development and Marketing of New Functional Food Products

15:00-15:10 Coffee Break

15:10-15:50 Session 9Poster Session

15:50-16:00 Awards and Certificates

16:00-16:15 Conference Closing

Please note: Schedule subject to change.