Remembering Yuan-Xiang Pan, longtime nutrition professor
Yuan-Xiang Pan, professor of food science and human nutrition in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, died on Sept. 7. He was 58.
Pan spent more than two decades at Illinois advancing nutritional science, educating and mentoring students, and serving the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition. His research examined how environmental factors, including diet, can lead to epigenetic modifications that influence health and disease. Through this work, Pan contributed to a growing understanding of how nutrition can affect health and disease across the lifespan.
Pan was particularly dedicated to students. He taught advanced nutrition courses to undergraduate and graduate students and was recognized numerous times on the University of Illinois’ List of Teachers Ranked as Excellent by Their Students. He also served as associate head with responsibility for undergraduate students and directed the James Scholar Program in Food Science and Human Nutrition.
“Professor Pan was one of the most encouraging and enthusiastic colleagues I have had the privilege to work with,” said Nicki Engeseth, professor and head of FSHN. “He was deeply dedicated to mentoring students and faculty, and he was someone I could always turn to for thoughtful, insightful advice. Over 20 years, I watched him build strong relationships with students, faculty, and staff because he genuinely valued each person. We have lost a wonderful professor, colleague, and mentor, and he will be greatly missed.”
Pan’s contributions to nutritional science earned national recognition. In 2012, he received the Norman Kretchmer Memorial Award in Nutrition and Development from the American Society for Nutrition. He authored or co-authored more than 100 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters over the course of his career.
“Yuan-Xiang’s legacy at Illinois is reflected not only in the knowledge he helped advance, but in the many students and colleagues whose lives and careers he shaped,” said College of ACES Dean Germán Bollero. “He approached his work and the people around him with generosity, enthusiasm, and kindness. We are deeply grateful for all he contributed to our college and university community.”
Pan earned a bachelor’s degree in cell biology from Lanzhou University in China and master’s and doctoral degrees in animal nutrition from Virginia Tech. He completed postdoctoral training in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Florida College of Medicine.
A memorial service celebrating Pan’s life will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15, at Renner-Wikoff Chapel & Crematory, 1900 Philo Road, Urbana, followed by a private family burial at Woodlawn Cemetery. The service will also be available via Zoom.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial gifts be made to the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition Excellence Fund.