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Dr. Mortreux is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Nutrition and a Ryan Assistant Professor of Neuroscience. Before starting at URI in 2022, she was an Instructor at Harvard Medical School (2019-2022) in Boston, MA. 

​Dr. Mortreux obtained her B.Sc (2010) and European M.Sc (2012) in genetics and life sciences, along with a European Magistere of Genetics (2012), which were combined to laboratory work in l’Universita Degli Studi di Padova, Italy , at the University of California San Francisco, USA, and at Université Paris Diderot Paris VII in Paris, France. She then received her Ph.D. in physiopathology/cell biology in Paris in 2016.

​She pursued her postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School, focusing on NASA-funded studies. She created the first rat analog model of partial gravity, and studied musculoskeletal deconditioning and recovery, and used circulating miRNA and electrical impedance myography as new biomarkers. She then investigated the effects of resveratrol, a common polyphenol, as a mitigating countermeasure to prevent muscle deconditioning and assessed the impact of disuse on the circadian system.

​Dr. Mortreux is currently supported by /involved in on 5 funded NASA-grants, and an active member of the NASA Analysis Working Group for the Animal Life Science Data Archive, an open-science endeavor.

​Dr. Mortreux received additional funding from the Rhode Island Foundation and the URI College of Health Sciences to better understand how nutraceutical components can impact muscle homeostasis and the cellular receptors that may be at play.

​Dr. Mortreux serves as a Scientific Advisor for GravityLab, a company developing a free-flying satellite to enable partial gravity research in low Earth orbit, and is joined the Board of Advisors for SEDS France (Students for the Exploration and Development of Space).

Theodoros Pavlidis
PhD Student

Theodoros holds an MSc in Clinical Dietetics from the University of Nicosia, where he also contributed to research projects such as evaluating DNA and microbiome impacts of different types of milk consumption and investigating the relationship between food consumption frequency and cognitive function.

He broadened his experience in nutrition research through 3 internships in Portugal, Italy and Spain. He has earned nine continuing education certificates in sports nutrition and human physiology from the American College of Sports Medicine, the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association, and other organizations. Additionally, he completed the EIT Food RIS Fellowships Workshop advancing to the final phase and ranking among the top 50 of 250 participants in assessments of communication, problem solving, and critical thinking. Through his hobby in graphic design, he represented the University of Nicosia at the 2024 ERACON Poster Design Competition, earning 2nd place in the Europe-wide contest. Following his MSc thesis on space nutrition, Theodoros is now pursuing his passion with a PhD under Dr. Mortreux.

Emily Nigro
ABM Student

My name’s Emily Nigro and I am a sophomore at URI. I am a dietetics major, and I plan to do a 5 Year Accelerated Bachelor’s to Master’s program at my school.

Sam Dworacek
Graduate Student

Sam is a graduate student currently pursuing her MSDI at the University of Rhode Island. Throughout her academic journey she has discovered a special interest in biochemistry and metabolism. Sam has experience in the URI BYTE lab working under a graduate student on projects involving public health nutrition research.

Sam has been an enthusiastically active member of the URI Nutrition Club since transferring to URI in 2021. She was elected Vice President and will be running for President for her final undergraduate year.

Sam prides herself in her passion for discovery as she loves the learning process and is endlessly curious about the world around her. She very much looks forward to the opportunity to explore and expand her horizons in the M2B lab.

Juan José Robleda
Graphic Designer

Juan José (Jay) is a photographer and graphic designer specialized in audiovisual media. He has experience in a variety of disciplines within design such as branding, corporate identity development, commercial photography, and documentary filming among others.

Jay is responsible for creating all logos and graphics required including specific projects and the M2B Lab itself. He strives to combine his love for all things space and technology with design. He is currently working on growing the Mexican company he works for in the United States.

David Ayi-Bonte
Graduate Student

David is an international student from Ghana currently studying for his master’s at URI. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in nutrition and food science at the University of Ghana. During his time at the University of Ghana, he worked with the sensory science lab on product development and food testing projects. After his BS, he worked with Danone as a research and innovation technologist, where he was involved in nutrition, sensory evaluation, and the design and manufacturing of yogurts, ice cream, milk drinks, and juice drinks. He is highly motivated by nutrition to not only practice curative medicine but also preventive medicine in mediating diet-induced ailments. David obtained his Masters degree in 2025.

James Madden
Undergraduate Student

James graduated in 2025 after spending his time working on several projects, including analyzing the muscles of mice that flew onboard of the International Space Station. He received the URI Academic Excellence Award and will apply to PA school!

Hadley St Cyr
Undergraduate Student

I am a junior here at URI double majoring in dietetics and exercise science. I have been involved in research labs here on campus but what drew me to this lab is the interaction of metabolism and muscle plasticity, incorporating both aspects of academic fields I am interested in. I am super eager to take part in this lab working with Dr Mortreux and her amazing research while granted the opportunity to aid her and contributing to the lab in my own way.

Margot Issertine
Graduate Research Student

Margot has a B.Sc in Physiology and Neurosciences, and a M.Sc in Experimental and Regenerative Medicine from Montpellier Faculty of Science in France. She specialized in space physiology through international internships, studying space cardiology at the LPHYS Lab from the Université Libre de Bruxelles and gravity shifts at Harvard Medical School under Dr. Mortreux’s supervision.

Margot is now pursuing her PhD at the DMeM laboratory at the University of Montpellier, France, in collaboration with the M2B Lab at URI. She will use Dr. Mortreux’s partial weight-bearing model to study the impact of pre-conditioning and nutraceutical supplementation on muscle health.

Margot is the current president of SELGRA, the Student European Low Gravity Association and has participated in several space mission analogs. She took part in the CHILL-ICE 2022 mission in lava tubes in Iceland, and the APICES 2023 mission in a cave in Spain.

Grace Brucato
Summer Research Assistant

Grace is a summer research assistant entering her senior year of high school at Newton Country Day School in Massachusetts. In addition to working with Dr. Mortreux, Grace also works in an Energy Balance Lab at the University of Rhode Island. Throughout the past few years, Grace has taken many college-level courses in nutrition and hopes to pursue a career in nutrition.

Robert Cullen
Graduate Student

Robert has a B.Sc in Cellular and Molecular Biology, from the University of Rhode Island. During his time at URI, Robert worked in various labs including an environmental engineering lab studying nano-materials, and in a neuroscience lab studying the effects of ALS. Robert is now a graduate student in URI’s M.Sc Nutrition and Food Science program, working on his thesis under Dr. Mortreux. In his free-time, Robert enjoys cooking and playing guitar.