Name: Brianna Bourgeois
Year in Program: 3rd Year Graduate Student
Department: Department of Physiology
Mentor: Liz Simon, PhD
Hometown: Paulina, LA (St. James Parish)
Education: B.S. in Biological Engineering from Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge
Past Research Experience:
As an undergraduate, I worked in numerous research lab. At LSU, I worked under Dr. Dorin Boldor where the focus was using microwaves and unique sources for biofuel production. I spent my summers at other universities including Yale University and University of Washington where I focused on incorporating unnatural amino acids into proteins and looking at the mechanism in which bacteria bind to platelets in flow to cause endocarditis, respectively.
Before starting the MD/PhD program, I spent some time working for Dr. Steven Heymsfield at Pennington Biomedical Research Center. My primary focus at Pennington was to collect data for a larger study that aimed to use 3D imaging technology for predicting health risks. I also worked a lot with bioimpedance systems and understanding how these devices could be useful in predicting muscle quantity and quality. At Pennington, I became interested in skeletal muscle health, sarcopenia, and frailty.
Current Research Interest:
A decrease in functional skeletal muscle mass can worsen outcomes of other chronic conditions and impairs overall quality of life. Both HIV and at-risk alcohol use can lead to reductions in functional skeletal muscle mass. This can be due to altered anabolic/catabolic signaling, increased fibrosis, altered bioenergetic health, or reduced regenerative capacity. I am particularly interested in how alcohol use affects skeletal muscle regenerative capacity. In my research, I use both a preclinical non-human primate model of chronic alcohol consumption and clinical cohorts to study how extracellular microRNAs contribute to alcohol-mediated impairments in skeletal muscle stem cell regeneration.
Publications:
Fennell Laura, Bourgeois Brianna, Boldor Dorin. Continuous microwave drying of the seeds of the invasive Chinese tallow tree. Biofuels, Bioprod Bioref. 2015. doi:10.1002/bbb.1544
Heymsfield Steven, Bourgeois Brianna, Thomas Diana. Assessment of human energy exchange: historical overview. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2017. PMID: 27876807
Bourgeois Brianna, Ng Bennett, Latimer Dustin, Casey Stannard, Romeo Laura, Li Xin, Shepherd John, Heymsfield Steven. Clinically applicable optical imaging technology for body size and shape analysis: comparison of systems differing in design. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2017. PMID: 28876331
Bourgeois Brianna, Watts Krista, Thomas Diana, Hu Frank, Heo Moonseong, Hall John, Heymsfield Steven. Associations between height and blood pressure in the United States population. Medicine (Baltimore). 2017. PMID: 29390353
Heymsfield Steven, Bourgeois Brianna, Thomas Diana. Why is it Difficult to Lose and Maintain Large Amounts of Weight with Lifestyle and Pharmacologic Treatments? Obesity (Silver Spring). 2017. PMID: 29081067
Bourgeois Brianna, Fan Bo, Johannsen Neil, Gonzales Maria Cristina, Ng Bennett, Sommer Markus, Shepherd John, Heymsfield Steven. Improved strength prediction combining clinically available measures of skeletal muscle mass and quality. J Cachexia Sarcopenia Muscle. 2019. PMID: 30371008
Heymsfield Steven, Bourgeois Brianna, Ng Bennett, Sommer Markus, Li X, Shepherd JA. Digital anthropometry: a critical review. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2018. PMID: 29748657
Ng Bennett, Sommer Markus, Wong Michael, Pagano Ian, Nie Yilin, Fan Bo, Kennedy Samantha, Bourgeois Brianna, Kelly Nisa, Liu Yong, Hwaung Phoenix, Garber Andrea, Chow Dominic, Vaissee Christian, Curless Brian, Heymsfield Steven, Shepherd John. Detailed 3-dimensional body shape features predict body composition, blood metabolites, and functional strength: the Shape Up! studies. Am J Clin Nutr. 2019. PMID: 31553429
Hwaung Phoenix, Heo Moonseong, Bourgeois Brianna, Kennedy Samantha, Shepherd John, Heymsfield Steven. Greater Height Is Associated with a Larger Carotid Lumen Diameter. Medicines (Basel). 2019. PMID: 31091706
Bourgeois Brianna, Lin Hui-Yi, Yeh Alice, Levitt Danielle, Primeaux Stefany, Ferguson Takeda, Molina Patrica, Simon Liz. Unique Circulating MicroRNA Associations with Dysglycemia in PLWH Modulated by Alcohol Use. Physiological Genomics. 2021. PMID: 34859690
In Review:
Bourgeois Brianna, Levitt Danielle, Molina Patricia, Simon Liz. Differential Expression of Adipocyte and Myotube Extracellular Vesicle miRNA Cargo in Chronic Binge Alcohol-administered SIV-infected Male Macaques.
Book Chapters:
Bourgeois Brianna, Levitt Danielle, Molina Patricia, Simon Liz. Chronic alcohol and Skeletal Muscle. Handbook of Substance Misuse and Addictions: From Biology to Public Health. 2021. (accepted)
Simon Liz, Bourgeois Brianna, Poret Jonquil, Molina Patricia. Skeletal muscle and adipose tissue; targets or relays for interorgan axis in alcohol-induced tissue injury? Alcoholism and Alcohol-related Disorders. 2022. (submitted)
Career Goal: I am interested in academic medicine. I envision a future career that would allow me to be a clinician, researcher, and teacher. At the moment, I am interested in pursuing a PSTP residency program with a focus in endocrinology and hope to mainly focus on clinical research projects. Additionally, I enjoy the teaching opportunities I have had as a graduate student and would want to continue to have opportunities to teach future generations of medical professionals.
Best Thing about the Program: We have a great community of students who are super supportive and encouraging.
What makes you unique? My first job out of undergrad was a high school teacher in the Bronx.