INFORM October 2024

YOUR AOCS COMMUNITY

inform October 2024, Vol. 35 (9) • 7

not their positioning on the glycerol backbone. I am excited that with the methodologies we developed, we can reach a new layer of depth in the structural analysis of lipids, possibly revealing something that has previously been overlooked. This can potentially lead to revelations in our understanding of the nutritional and biological significance of individual phospho lipid molecules. SPOTLIGHT ON CAMRYNN SIMON Camrynn Simon is a masters’ student in food science in the food colloids lab of professor Supratim Ghosh at the University of Saskatchewan, Canada. She was born and raised in Saskatchewan, and her love for food and cooking developed at a young age when her grandparents introduced her to the Food Network. So, it was only fitting that when she discovered food science at the beginning of post-secondary education, it sparked a passion in her that is ever-growing and changing, just like the field of food science. INFORM: What part of your research or work involves phospholipids? Simon: My research involves emulsion and emulsion dynamics. Specifically, I am making plant protein and phospholipid-based, oil-in-water emulsions. They contain a high percentage of oil and a major focus of my research is on the dynamics at the oil-water interface of the dispersed droplets. Analyzing and understanding these interfacial interactions are extremely important and this is where phospholipids come in. I am using phospholipids in my high oil-containing emulsions to help with stability and to attain different functional characteristics. In addition, I am working with phospholipids that come from plants, as with the rest of my materials. This provides an extra layer of difficulty but it is a very interesting and informa tive research experience. INFORM: What new research or advancements are you looking for to move your industry forward? Alternatively, what advancements do you find most promising? Simon: Coming from a lab that works with a wide variety of plant proteins, I find the sourcing of phospholipids from plants quite interesting, as well as the advancement of the refining process of those phospholipids. Additionally, I find that there is a lot of research on harnessing phospholipids and their capa bilities in the biomedical field, but they are not as well studied in food science and in food products. So, seeing how we can take this knowledge from other fields and apply it in different ways in the food sector is something that interests me. INFORM: How does attending the AOCS Annual Meeting support your research and interests? Simon: Attending the AOCS annual meeting furthers my pas sion for food science but also increases my love for being a part of this research community. I find that, to no fault of its own, when you are part of a lab that all have similar projects by nature it will sometimes lack diversity in ideas. Do not get me wrong, it creates an incredibly supportive environment

Camrynn Simon

with an endless amount of background knowledge but can sometimes lack the diversity that is needed when it comes to the problem-solving side of research. So, being introduced to a wide range of topics and researchers helps me gather new ideas and understand new concepts that I may not have found on my own. Also, I find that being surrounded by pas sionate people, whatever the topic, is very invigorating for myself and my research. I’ve been lucky enough to make it to two AOCS annual meetings, and the first one was at the very beginning of my master’s degree. I was fresh out of my undergraduate degree and not exactly sure what an aca demic research landscape was like. I would say that going to AOCS not only helped me see what a passion for one’s research is all about but also to see the faces behind these papers that I’ve been reading. INFORM: What future research directions are you excited about concerning phospholipids? Due to my work with Dr. Ghosh and my experience with emul sions in his lab, I’m looking forward to how phospholipids can be used further in emulsions and emulsion-based food prod ucts. I am also interested in the further advancements in iso lating and analyzing specific phospholipids from plant sources. I think phospholipids are under-researched ingredients when it comes to the food science sector, where there may be more in-depth research in other areas, and seeing how previous knowledge, even in different contexts, can be applied to food products is very exciting. Additionally, coming from a lab that uses a large number of plant-based products, I am always look ing forward to materials that can be sourced from plants in sustainable ways.