Professorship Honors Khem ShahaniProfessorship Honors Khem Shahani

Professorship Honors Khem ShahaniLINCOLN, Neb.-- The Khem M. Shahani Professorship in Food Science and Technology, a newly-established professorship at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, honors the work of Khem Shahani, Ph.D., in microbiology. The professorship was established with lead gifts of $200,000 from Shahani's wife, Leona, and $25,000 from the American Dairy Association. Income from the endowment will allow the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Sciences to provide a stipend to a professor engaged in research on the nutritional benefits of dairy foods.The first Shahani professorship was awarded to Robert Hutkins, a professor of food science and technology. His research involves the study of bacteria important in food fermentations and that play a role in human health. The goal of his research team is to understand the molecular basis for how probiotics metabolize nutrients, how they grow and interact with their competitors in the intestinal track and how they promote gastrointestinal (GI) health.Shahani was a leader in probiotic research, serving as a professor of food science and technology at UNL from 1957 until his death in 2001. During his tenure, he developed and worked on the DDS-1 strain of Lactobacillus acidophilus. Shahani also founded Nebraska Cultures, a Walnut Creek, Calif.-based supplier and manufacturer of probiotics.