Dr. Richard holds a Canada Research Chair in Nutritional Immunology and specializes in human and animal nutritional studies and has expertise in obesity-related cardiometabolic complications, immunology and choline. 

Her research program focuses on understanding the role of nutrition in mitigating the immune dysfunction associated with chronic diseases including obesity, type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney diseases.  

Her work and areas of expertise can be found here:
https://sites.google.com/ualberta.ca/carolinerichardlab/bio 

Dr. Mereu is a clinical researcher who focuses on diabetes and its associated complications. As a clinician, she oversees patients with endocrine disorders including diabetes, thyroid, polycystic ovarian syndrome, osteoporosis, adrenal and pituitary disorders. She practices at the Kaye Edmonton Clinic.  

To know more about her work:

https://apps.ualberta.ca/directory/person/lmereu 

Paulina completed a Bachelor's in Nutrition in 2015 and a Bachelor's in Chemical Engineering in 2004 at the University of Guadalajara (Mexico). She moved to Canada to pursue her PhD in Nutrition and Metabolism at the University of Alberta, graduating in 2021. She published her work in peer review journals. 

Paulina plays a key role in the Kefir-IM Study by coordinating participant recruitment, study visits, and various operational tasks. Additionally, she is actively involved in processing and analyzing human samples for the KetoIM project in the laboratory.

Gabby is a Registered Dietitian and graduated from the University of Alberta with a B.Sc. in Nutrition and Dietetics. She has experience supporting patients with chronic disease management, including diabetes, cardiovascular risk, and gastrointestinal health. She joined our team in 2025 to purse her M.Sc. in Human Nutrition under the supervision of Dr. Ben Willing and Dr. Caroline Richard. 

Gabby supports participants during their study visits, explains procedures, collects blood samples. She also processes blood samples in the lab to investigate how fermented kefir may influence the immune system and inflammation in participants  with elevated blood sugars. She is interested in how food, nutrition, the microbiome, and immunity shape health, and appreciates the contribution of every participant to this research.

Emily graduated from The King’s University in Edmonton in 2025 with a B.Sc. in Biology and a minor in Chemistry. She began her M.Sc. in Human Nutrition shortly after, under the supervision of Dr. Ben Willing and Dr. Caroline Richard. Her research focuses on culturing, identifying, and analyzing bacterial and yeast communities involved in kefir fermentation, as well as ensuring culture quality control. Emily’s interests center on gut microbiome health, particularly how nutrition and fermented foods can support improved health outcomes. She is excited to contribute to this study and further explore the links between diet and microbiome function. 

Alexander is a senior Laboratory Technician with expertise in flow cytometry and inflammation measurements. He completed an honours Diploma in Biological Sciences-Laboratory and Research at NAIT in 2019 as a program ambassador. Afterwards, he has worked for Dr. Caroline Richard on clinical and pre-clinical projects. 

Alexander will oversee the training, human sample processing and analysis in our laboratory for the Kefir-IM study.