Research team

Brad is an Associate Professor in the Department of Food Science. He pursued a career in Food Science after taking an analytical chemistry course which sparked his interest in the field, and was given the opportunity to work as an undergraduate researcher in microbiology and later, chemistry and health. He earned BS and PhD degrees in Food Science at UW-Madison focusing on the cancer-preventing components of beans, before training at the Jean Meyer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University. At Tufts, he continued to pursue his interest in polyphenol chemistry, metabolism, nutrition, and health. After beginning his faculty career at the University of Connecticut, he returned to UW-Madison in 2014 to lead a program in food and health research. His team is focused on improving the impact of food on human and environmental health, while increasing the sustainability and equity of the food system. Brad has broad interests in food, including nuts, fruits, vegetables, spices, fermented dairy products, and waste materials from food production. More recently, he is interested in developing underutilized foods in Wisconsin, such as aronia berry and hazelnut that can improve biodiversity and the ecological landscapes. He has contributed to teaching undergraduate and graduate courses, including Advanced Food Biochemistry, The Chocolate Experience, Principles of Food Preservation, and Food Bioactives.

Outside of the office, you can find Brad spending time with family and friends, biking, hiking, birdwatching, gardening, cross-country skiing, cooking, playing ultimate frisbee, disc golfing or trying to teach his dog Ranger new tricks. He enjoys traveling and is enthusiastic about learning about new cultures and foods. He has been dethroned as the pickleball champion of the lab and is currently searching for a sport that he can claim he is the best at.

Andrea has been on a long and winding journey to her current position. She joined as a member of the Bolling Lab team in the summer of 2020, shortly after graduating with a Master of Science degree in Bacteriology from the UW. Andrea arrived with years of research experience in several disciplines, including Microbiology, Genetics, and Immunology. During these experiences, she focused on projects that promoted human health in various ways. Therefore, Andrea initially joined the team as a bench scientist to conduct multiple projects investigating the connection between food compounds and health.

While working in the lab, passionate about sustainability efforts, she led the lab toward achieving a Green Lab Certification. Simultaneously, Andrea also worked on and completed a Master of Public Health degree in the Social and Behavioral Sciences concentration through the UF. These values and experiences prompted Andrea’s role to evolve in the lab as she shifted toward community-engaged research.

Bridging the gap between bench research and the social sciences, Andrea specializes in sustainable health equity initiatives. With a One Health perspective, she is dedicated to addressing food and nutrition insecurity and advancing equity in communities, especially among populations historically underrepresented in research.

Andrea values a work-life balance and enjoys spending time with family and friends. With an adventurous spirit, she stays active, loves to travel and experience other cultures, and is an outdoor enthusiast. You may even spot her climbing up a rock face if you look carefully.

Peyton received a B.A. in Chemistry from Smith College and a Ph.D. in Chemistry from UW – Madison. Peyton’s doctoral research in Prof. Andrew Buller’s lab was in the field of protein engineering for biocatalysis; in other words, they studied how to get enzymes to catalyze the synthesis of new and biologically interesting chemicals. Partway through graduate school, Peyton discovered an interest in sustainable agriculture research and was surprised to learn that protein engineering and plant breeding have a few things in common! They spent a semester as a visiting researcher studying hazelnuts as part of the Upper Midwest Hazelnut Development Initiative (UMHDI).

Peyton returned to the world of hazelnuts Fall 2023 as a postdoctoral researcher whose work is co-advised by Brad Bolling and Julie Dawson. They are using near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy and various lab techniques to profile the nutrient composition of hazelnut kernels from UMHDI breeding populations, with the goal of assisting selection for high quality hazelnut kernels.

Outside of work, Peyton enjoys spending time with their wife and dogs, rock climbing, playing hockey, and practicing a variety of fiber arts (knitting, crochet, and spinning, so far…). Looking ahead, Peyton is especially interested in the process of translating academic research into real-world action and aspires to use their scientific background to promote the development of sustainable and equitable food systems.

Aom received her BS degree in Food Science with a minor in nutritional sciences from Pennsylvania State University in the Spring of 2022. She completed an undergraduate honors thesis investigating in vitro bioavailability of dietary flavonoids in oral cancer cells. Her research experience led to her interest in nutraceutical and functional foods to prevent chronic diseases (especially cancer). Therefore, she joined the Bolling research group as an MS student in the Fall of 2022 to study peanut polyphenols. Currently, she is working on a pilot study of the anti-cancer effects of phytochemicals from peanuts on leukemia cell lines. In her free time, Aom enjoys running, working out, and listening to music.

Tomomi received a B.S. in Nursing from Hokkaido University, Japan, and worked as a registered nurse in the orthopedics and spinal surgery unit as well as home care.  She joined the Bolling research lab in the Fall of 2019 as a volunteer where she created 3D surgical heart models using food gels and assisted with the yogurt study as a phlebotomist.  She joined the lab as an MS student in the Summar of 2023 to study cranberry phytochemicals. She is interested in how different cranberry cultivars differ in phytochemicals and their effects on bioavailability and health.

In her free time, she enjoys cooking, fermentation, and working out.

Klay received his BS degrees in Food Science and in Forensic Chemistry from University of California, Davis, and his MS degree in Food Science from The Ohio State University before he joined the Bolling lab in January 2022. His previous research mentors include Profs. Selina Wang, Gary Smith and Bruce German at UC Davis, Prof. Michael Gore at Cornell University, and Prof. Devin Peterson at Ohio State. Klay is interested in understanding the chemical, functional and nutritional properties of food components, and enhancing the ability of foods to deliver improved health outcomes. Currently, Klay is studying the bioaccessibility and bioavailability of cranberry and aronia berry polyphenols. In between experiments, he loves to walk over to the Dairy Cattle Center to pet cows.

In his free time, Klay enjoys cooking, home bartending, playing board games, attending live concerts and comedy shows, and staying active. He dreams of having a LEGO room, a snooker room, and a kitchen shelf big enough for his ever-growing coffee mug collection. Also, those who are close to Klay know that his fandom for Ohio State football fuels his hatred for all things Michigan.

Kevin earned his BS in Human Nutrition from Chung Shan Medical University in Taiwan and an MPH in Public Health Nutrition and Dietetics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC). He is a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN) in both Taiwan and the US.

After graduating from UNC, Kevin worked as a research technician at the National Institute of Mental Health Psychoactive Drug Screening Program under the supervision of Dr. Bryan Roth and Dr. Xi-Ping Huang. His expertise lies in high-throughput drug screening binding and functional methods, and skills in molecular biology and animal studies. The intersection of nutritional sciences and pharmacology inspired him to become a dietitian-scientist, leading him to pursue a PhD in Nutrition and Metabolism at UW-Madison. He joined the Bolling Lab at the end of 2023. He is interested in discovering food bioactives and gaining a deeper understanding of their potential therapeutical or nutraceutical impacts on humans at multiple levels. Kevin is also keen on exploring the signaling pathways and metabolism of food bioactives.

Outside of the lab, Kevin collaborates with fellow RDNs to disseminate evidence-based nutritional sciences to the public via Instagram (Nutriverse.TWUS). In his leisure time, he enjoys playing with his cat, Mia, engaging in badminton and swimming, and watching movies.

Juliana is a Senior at UW-Madison graduating in May 2024 with a B.S. in Nutritional Science
with certificates in Global Health, Disability Rights and Services, and Leadership. She started at
the Bolling Lab in January 2023 and is interested in studying the polyphenols of cranberries
and other foods with the help of her mentor Klay Liu. Outside of the lab, Juliana works at
Walgreens as a Senior Certified Pharmacy Technician and UnityPoint Health – Meriter as an
Ambulatory Pharmacy Technician. With all her interest in science and pharmacy, she hopes
to attend pharmacy school after graduation. She enjoys hiking, painting, and hanging out with
friends and family.

Kate is a sophomore at UW-Madison hoping to graduate in May 2026 with a B.S. in Nutritional Sciences & Dietetics and Psychology. She joined the Bolling lab in Spring 2024 and is studying the release of cranberry polyphenols from chewing gums. After graduation, she plans to attend graduate school. In her free time, she enjoys reading, cooking, staying active, and spending time with friends.