B (Blerina) Shkëmbi PhD MSc

I got my B.Sc. degree in Biology of Nutrition and my M.Sc. degree in Nutrition and Functional Food at the University of Camerino, Italy. During my M.Sc. degree I worked on the development of a new milk based product which was used to conduct a human feeding trial to validate the fermented milk as a carrier for transporting bacterial cells into the human gastrointestinal tract.

In 2019, I obtained my PhD degree in Food Science at the University of Teramo, Italy. During my PhD I worked on the formulation and characterization of different types of egg pasta containing variable amounts of protein, fiber and fat. The main purpose of this work was to evaluate, through in vitro digestion tests and clinical studies, the degree of digestibility of the different formulations and the effect of their ingestion on the level of blood glucose and on the insulin response.

After the PhD scholarship I received a six-month research grant, during which I studied the properties of various edible insects in relation to their inhibitory activity against the main enzyme involved in starch digestion, alpha amylase. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the potential health beneficial effects of the inclusion of insect powders or extracts within widely consumed food products such as pasta and bread.

From October 2020, I started as a postdoctoral researcher at the Food Quality and Design Department of the Wageningen University & Research. This job position consists in a series of desk studies on sustainable food systems and on mineral bioavailability with main focus on dairy products. The main purpose of this work is gathering literature and other data, building datasets, creating overviews and writing papers.