Academics | Extension | Research

• Graduate Student Award

John W. Parry is a Ph.D. candidate working with Dr. Liangli Yu in the Department of Nutrition and Food Science. John is studying Nutraceutical and Food Chemistry and is carrying a 4.0 grade point average. John's dissertation research is to promote value-added agricultural and food production in the United States by discovering and characterizing health-beneficial factors in production. This emerging field in food science may enhance the US agricultural economy while improving human health.

John has been involved in several research project which has resulted in seven manuscripts published or accepted in top peer-reviewed international agriculture and food chemistry journals, two invited talks to the American chemical Society annual meetings, nine abstracts and two book chapters, including a chapter in Bailiey's Industrial Oil and Fat Products' (6th edition) which is considered the bible for people in oil and fat research, development, manufacturing, and marketing.

His research has attracted external funding for future work. John's four major areas of focus are:

1. Discovery and development of value-added utilization of fruit seeds and their components as nutraceuticals in functional foods and dietary supplements to prevent aging associated with chronic diseases.
2. Identification of novel dietary sources of alternative long-chain omega-3 fatty acids.
3. Development of novel natural food preservative to replace synthetic food additives, which will improve food safety and quality.
4. Discovery and evaluation of potential weight-controlling agents to prevent obesity and possible consequences related to cancer and cardiovascular diseases.

Beyond his own work, John has been instrumental in building a cell culture laboratory from the ground up and has assisted M.S. and fellow Ph.D. candidates in their work. He also took on the challenge of teaching a senior-level course-Food Quality-with less that 10 days notice. This course is required for graduating seniors in Food Science. He has also been active in the Food Technology Club and the University of Maryland's BioScience Research and Technology Review Day.