Pennington Biomedical Welcomes Dr. Stefan Pasiakos as Director of the Center for Human Performance Optimization
BATON ROUGE—Pennington Biomedical Research Center is pleased to announce that Stefan Pasiakos, Ph.D., has joined the faculty as Professor and Director of Human Performance Optimization. In this role, Dr. Pasiakos will lead groundbreaking research aimed at enhancing human performance and physiology across diverse environments—from the battlefield to deep space.
Dr. Pasiakos brings a distinguished background in nutritional science and human performance to Pennington Biomedical. He most recently served as Director of the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements and previously held several senior leadership positions at the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, or USARIEM, where he focused on military nutrition and operational effectiveness from 2009 through 2023.
"Dr. Pasiakos' recruitment aligns perfectly with our human performance strategic initiatives," said Dr. John Kirwan, Executive Director of Pennington Biomedical. "His expertise strengthens our capabilities to enhance U.S. Military resilience, advance spaceflight bioenergetics for astronaut safety during extended missions, and develop cutting-edge nutrition and exercise protocols for elite athletes. These valuable insights will ultimately translate to optimized nutrition and physical activity strategies benefiting the general public."
In his role over Human Performance Optimization, Dr. Pasiakos will develop strategies that focus on muscle physiology, nutrition, neuroscience and technology that will result in successful programmatic outcomes. His research will include optimizing functional capabilities along the performance continuum for warfighter resilience, readiness and operational effectiveness; space travel; nutrition, nutraceutical and pharmacological interventions; and other projects within the scope of human-performance research.
"I am sincerely grateful for the opportunity to join Pennington Biomedical and eager to reestablish my own research, while building a new innovative research center based on the incredible foundation Pennington Biomedical provides," Dr. Pasiakos said. "What excites me most is the opportunity to get back to what I enjoy most—leading science and research teams dedicated to helping those exposed to extreme stress in the harshest of conditions perform at their best. Doing so at such a prestigious organization is an honor. I look forward to reinvigorating past partnerships and am excited to develop new collaborations with top scientists from academia, government, and industry to drive innovations in human performance science."
The author of more than 170 scientific publications, journal articles, and book chapters, Dr. Pasiakos' work to refine dietary and supplemental protein recommendations for soldiers is internationally recognized. He has received numerous awards for his contributions to military medicine and was awarded the Vernon R. Young International Award for Amino Acid Research from the American Society for Nutrition. He is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine. In addition, he was selected as one of the 55 Excellence in Nutrition Fellows of the American Society for Nutrition to be honored in Orlando at NUTRITION 2025.
Dr. Pasiakos received his Ph.D. in nutritional science in 2008 from the University of Connecticut. He also holds an MA and BS in exercise physiology from Adelphi University and Southern Connecticut State University, respectively. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship in the Miliary Nutrition Division at the USARIEM in 2012 as a United States Army Medical Service Corps officer.
About the Pennington Biomedical Research Center
The Pennington Biomedical Research Center is at the forefront of medical discovery as it relates to understanding the triggers of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer and dementia. Pennington Biomedical has the vision to lead the world in promoting metabolic health and eliminating metabolic disease through scientific discoveries that create solutions from cells to society. The center conducts basic, clinical, and population research, and is a campus in the LSU System.
The research enterprise at Pennington Biomedical includes over 600 employees within a network of 44 clinics and research laboratories, and 14 highly specialized core service facilities. Its scientists and physician/scientists are supported by research trainees, lab technicians, nurses, dietitians, and other support personnel. Pennington Biomedical is a globally recognized state-of-the-art research institution in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
For more information, see www.pbrc.edu.
Provided by Louisiana State University
