Meet the Team

Principal Investigator

Dr. Daniel Merenstein is a tenured Professor and director of research in the Department of Family Medicine at Georgetown University. He has a secondary appointment in the Department of Human Science, School of Nursing and Health Studies, where he teaches two undergraduate courses: a research capstone and a seminar class on evaluating evidence based medical decisions. He has received funding from the NIH, USDA, foundations, and Industry. The primary goal of his research is to improve patient care and provide answers to common clinical questions that lack evidence. Dr. Merenstein is a clinical trialist who has recruited over 1,700 participants for 8 probiotic trials since 2006. He is an expert on probiotics, antibiotic stewardship in outpatient settings, and conducts HIV research in a large women’s cohort. He sees patients in clinic one day a week.

Dan lives in Maryland with his wife and 4 boys. Ask Dan about anything to do with Pittsburgh - most importantly Pittsburgh sports, how to improve your studying, running, the importance of having fun at work, and why Bob Dylan deserved the Nobel prize.

Study Coordinator

Jessy Sparenborg is a native of Chile and enjoys using her Spanish. She graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in Conservation Biology. During her college years, she worked as a Research and Teaching Assistant and participated in the Best Buddies program.

After graduating, Jessy worked as a substitute teacher for Challenger School and a science and group development teacher for Echo Hill Outdoor School. She has worked with the Georgetown University Research Team since 2006. She has assisted in several clinical trials and served as the Project Coordinator for two of them. Jessy enjoys spending time with her husband and three boys (6, 4 and 2 years old). Ask Jessy about Chile, camping and hiking.

Study Coordinator

Keisha Herbin-Smith received her undergraduate degree in Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her Masters’ degree at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. For three years, she worked for the State of North Carolina as a research specialist for the North Carolina Birth Defects Monitoring Program. Keisha worked with Dr. Merenstein at Georgetown University as a research assistant for a large pediatric study, and has served as the Project Coordinator for the SIPPY, PHASE, and PLAY studies.

Keisha is married with 2 boys, ages 3 and 7. Ask Keisha about working out, her new diet plan (quickly, as it changes frequently), teaching card making classes, carpooling, PTA, teaching Sunday School, juggling motherhood and work, UNC basketball and annoying Dan by procrastinating.

Research Program Manager

Tina Tan is the Research Program Manager for the Department of Family Medicine and serves as the regulatory contact for The PLAY ON Study. She is an ACRP Certified Clinical Research Coordinator and RACC Certified Research Administrator.

Tina graduated from Bryn Mawr College with a BA in Math and East Asian Studies, and studied abroad at the University of Melbourne. She received her MS in Clinical and Translational Research from Georgetown. She is originally from New York City, and hopes to travel through 40 countries before 40. Ask her why she chose a women's college, how to make any recipe paleo-friendly, teaching yourself the ukulele through YouTube, and her dog, Koa.

Co-Investigator

Claire Fraser, PhD is the Director of the Institute of Genomic Sciences at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. A pioneer and global leader in genomic medicine, Dr. Fraser is one of the most highly cited investigators in microbiology. In 1995, Dr. Fraser was the first to map the complete genetic code of a free-living organism—Haemophilus influenza—the bacterium that causes lower respiratory tract infections and meningitis in infants and young children. This achievement took place at the Institute for Genomic Research, where Dr. Fraser served as Director from 1998 until 2007.

Her discovery forever changed microbiology and launched a new field of study—microbial genomics. During that time, she and her team also sequenced the bacteria behind syphilis and Lyme disease, and eventually the first plant genome and the first human-pathogenic parasite. She even helped identify the source of a deadly 2001 anthrax attack in one of the biggest investigations conducted by U.S. law enforcement. In 2007, Dr. Fraser launched the Institute for Genome Sciences (IGS) at the University of Maryland, which holds over 25% of the funding awarded by the Human Microbiome Project.

Her current research interests center on the structure and function of the human gut microbiota. Dr. Fraser has authored more than 320 scientific publications, edited three books, and has served on committees of the National Science Foundation, Department of Energy, and National Institutes of Health. She is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the Promega Biotechnology Award and the E.O. Lawrence Award from the Department of Energy. Dr. Fraser uses her skills and position of leadership in genome sciences to improve the lives of women throughout the world.

Co-Investigator

Who makes Dr. Bob's yogurt?

A native of Burlington, Vermont, Dr. Robert (Bob) F. Roberts received his B.S. in Dairy Technology from the University of Vermont, an M.S. in Dairy Science from South Dakota State and a Ph.D. in Food Science from the University of Minnesota. He joined the Food Science Department at Penn State in 1991 and was appointed Department Head in March of 2013. Prior to becoming Department Head, Dr. Roberts was responsible for teaching a number of courses including “Introduction to Food Science,” “Introduction to Food Science Practicum,” “Chemical Methods of Food Analysis,” “Food, Facts, and Fads” and “Science and Technology of Dairy Products Processing.” He is also active in dairy foods processing outreach efforts at Penn State. In this role he organizes and directs the 125-year-old Penn State Ice Cream Short Course, Ice Cream 101 and the Cultured Dairy Products Short Course.

Dr. Robert's research program has focused primarily on the microbiology and technology of fermented dairy products. Current research in his laboratory includes characterization of probiotic bifidobacteria, development of allelic typing methods for strain-level differentiation of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis, comparative genomics of B. animalis strains and assessing the influence of probiotic delivery vehicles on the efficacy of B. animalis subsp. lactis BB-12 in humans.

In recognition for his efforts, Dr. Roberts has received several awards including The Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences Alumni Society Academic Advising Award (May 2000), The Milk Industry Foundation Teaching Award in Dairy Science from the American Dairy Science Association (ADSA) (July 2007), and he was selected as an Outstanding Alumnus of the University of Vermont’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (May 2008). He is a past-president of ADSA and a past-president of the Federation of Animal Science Societies (FASS).

Scientific Consultant

Dr. Mary Ellen Sanders, through her business Dairy & Food Culture Technologies, consults on all aspects of probiotic applications in the food and supplement industries. She believes probiotics will flourish only if available products are scientifically validated, responsibly produced and accurately labeled. She strives to balance the potential consumer benefits of probiotics with an understanding of the emerging science. Based on her extensive work with manufacturers, academicians and regulators, she offers a comprehensive perspective to those interested in the continued emergence of the probiotic industry.

Dr. Sanders also serves as the Executive Science Officer for the International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics.

Study Statistician

Frank D’Amico, PhD, is a Professor of Statistics and the Director of the Data Analysis Institute at Duquesne University. He enjoys teaching and is noted for using many types of hands-on toys for demonstrating methodological concepts at local, regional, and national conferences. His name appears on more than 140 peer-reviewed published medical journal articles. In his spare time, you can find him on the golf practice driving range or doing general aviation flying around Western Pennsylvania.

Project Coordinator

Brendan Burke serves as the Project Coordinator for the PLAY ON Study in the Department of Family Medicine. He graduated from Georgetown University with a Bachelor of Science in biology, with a focus on central nervous system development. He is a regular volunteer with the Muscular Dystrophy Association and Best Buddies, which support individuals with physical and intellectual disabilities, respectively. Prior to joining the PLAY ON team, he worked as a Project Coordinator for Georgetown’s Center for Social Justice.

Brendan is an avid runner and a longtime Hoya basketball fan. Ask him about bagels, his efforts to become a better chef, and the woes of being a DC sports fan.

Research Assistant

Julianna Lebron graduated from Northeastern University with a Bachelors of Science in Behavioral Neuroscience. She’s from Puerto Rico and enjoys using her Spanish to work with families in the study. Before moving to the DMV area, Julianna worked in a busy emergency department, volunteered for local non-profits, and was a member of a latin dance company.

Ask Julianna about her time in Greece, her latest food obsession, or the New York Yankees!

Research Assistants

A special thank you to the many Hoyas who were a part of the PLAY ON team throughout the years. Keep on shining bright.