​Short Bio

Stan J. Kubow obtained his PhD in 1984 from the University of Guelph after obtaining undergraduate and graduate degrees at McGill University and University of Toronto. He carried out postdoctoral studies at the University of Guelph and University of Toronto from 1984-1987 prior to joining the School of Dietetics and Human Nutrition at McGill University as an Assistant Professor in 1987. He has been an Associate Professor since 1993 and also served as Acting Director from 1993-1994. He serves on the editorial boards of Journal of Lipids, Nutrition and Medicine, Nutrients, and Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism. He participates as a grant panel member of Tri-council funding agencies including Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). He is recruited regularly by industry to support nutritional, toxicological, biochemical and phytochemical research investigations via grant and research contract support.

Research Interests

The major goal of Dr Kubow's research has been to promote human health by developing nutritional strategies to protect against the damaging effects of both external agents (drugs and environmental pollutants) and chronic disease pathologies. To achieve these advances, his laboratory instituted a variety of models to the study how the metabolism of nutrients, drugs and toxins affect disease outcomes (embryo and cell culture, simulated human gut digestion models and animal disease models). He has applied his laboratory-based findings towards nutrition intervention trials to show clinically important improvements in patient populations (chronic fatigue syndrome, cystic fibrosis, fibromyalgia, post-operative colon cancer recovery). Dr Kubow's studies also demonstrated the impact of dietary patterns on chronic disease risk and on the health risks from exposures to pollutants such as methylmercury in different populations (AIDS patients, Cree and Inuit aboriginal populations, obese and overweight children and adolescents). A common theme in his studies is assessment of how nutrients can protect against damage caused by disease processes and environmental toxins.

Research and Scientific Expertise

● Identification of bioactive phytochemicals: Plant foods contain bioactive components that can protect against metabolic disorders such as obesity and diabetes. Dr. Kubow's research involves the identification and isolation of those bioactives, which are tested for their antioxidant and antiinflammatory properties in pre-clinical studies.

● Human simulated gut model studies: Dr. Kubow uses a simulated human gut digestion model to examine how human gut microbiota metabolize: (a) polyphenols into health promoting bioactives; and (b) synthetic (polychlorinated biphenyls) and naturally occurring (heterocyclic amines) food toxicants into toxic metabolites.

● Human simulated first pass metabolism: Using a hydrid co-culture of human intestinal and hepatic cells, Dr. Kubow studies first pass metabolism of plant food components following their digestion in the gut model to identify absorbed metabolites via metabolomics and test for their health modulating effects.

● Testing of bioactive properties of dietary agents: Using cell and tissue culture, animal models and clinical intervention trials, Dr. Kubow's research evaluates the health promoting effects of dietary agents such as prebiotics and probiotics, peptides and a wide variety of phytochemicals.

Selected Publications

1. Alkazemi, D., Alsouri, N., Zafar, T., & Kubow, S. (2022). Hypomagnesemia and the Metabolic Syndrome among Apparently Healthy Kuwaiti Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study. Nutrients, 14(24), 5257. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14245257
2. Ebrahim, M., Alkazemi, D., Zafar, T.A. et al. (2019). Disordered eating attitudes correlate with body dissatisfaction among Kuwaiti male college students. J Eat Disord 7, 37. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-019-0265-z
3. Larder, C. E., Iskandar, M. M., & Kubow, S. (2021). Assessment of Bioavailability after In Vitro Digestion and First Pass Metabolism of Bioactive Peptides from Collagen Hydrolysates. Current Issues in Molecular Biology, 43(3), 1592-1605. https://doi.org/10.3390/cimb43030113
4. Alkazemi, D., Zafar, T.A. et al. (2024). Low dietary magnesium and fiber intakes among women with metabolic syndrome in Kuwait. Frontiers in Nutrition, 11 DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2024.1451220
5. Barkhidarian, B., Roldos, L., Iskandar, M. M., Saedisomeolia, A., & Kubow, S. (2021). Probiotic Supplementation and Micronutrient Status in Healthy Subjects: A Systematic Review of Clinical Trials. Nutrients, 13(9), 3001. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13093001
6. Muhammad H. Alu'datt; Doa'a G. F. Al‐u'datt; Mohammad N. Alhamad; Carole C. Tranchant; Taha Rababah; Sana Gammoh; Rami M. Althnaibat; Mohammad G. Daradkeh; Stan Kubow. (2021). Characterization and biological properties of peptides isolated from dried fermented cow milk products by RP‐HPLC: Amino acid composition, antioxidant, antihypertensive, and antidiabetic properties. Journal of Food Science, 86, 7,   https://doi.org/10.1111/1750-3841.15794
7. Kohzadi, M., Kubow, S., & Koski, K. G. (2025). Fetal Growth Is Associated with Amniotic Fluid Antioxidant Capacity, Oxidative Stress, Minerals and Prenatal Supplementation: A Retrospective Study. Antioxidants, 14(2), 184. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox14020184
8. Haj-Husein, I., Kubow, S., & Koski, K. G. (2024). Untargeted Lipidomic Profiling of Amniotic Fluid Reveals Dysregulated Lipid Metabolism in Healthy Normal-Weight Mothers with Fetal Macrosomia. Nutrients, 16(22), 3804. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16223804
9. Aidoo, R., Abe-Inge, V., Kwofie, E.M. et al. (2023). Sustainable healthy diet modeling for a plant-based dietary transitioning in the United States. npj Sci Food 7, 61. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41538-023-00239-6
10. Zhu, W., Iskandar, M. M., Baeghbali, V., & Kubow, S. (2023). Three-Dimensional Printing of Foods: A Critical Review of the Present State in Healthcare Applications, and Potential Risks and Benefits. Foods, 12(17), 3287. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12173287
11. Gammoh, S., Alu'datt, M. H., Alhamad, M. N., Tranchant, C. C., Rababah, T., Al-U'datt, D., Hussein, N., Alrosan, M., Tan, T.-C., Kubow, S., Alzoubi, H., & Almajwal, A. (2023). Functional and Bioactive Properties of Wheat Protein Fractions: Impact of Digestive Enzymes on Antioxidant, α-Amylase, and Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibition Potential. Molecules, 28(16), 6012. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28166012
12. Muhammad H. Alu'datt, Taha Rababah, Mohammad N. Alhamad, Sana Gammoh, Khalil Ereifej, Moh'd Alodat, Neveen M. Hussein, Stan Kubow, Peter J. Torley.(2016) Antioxidant and antihypertensive properties of phenolic–protein complexes in extracted protein fractions from Nigella damascena and Nigella arvensis, Food Hydrocolloids, 56, 84-92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodhyd.2015.12.008.​