Susan T. Mayne is newly named director of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, according to an official announcement by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Mayne has an extensive background in nutrition, toxicology and epidemiology. In her new role, she will “enhance the fundamental relationship between science and the FDA’s public health mission.”

In her previous high level roles, Mayne served at the Yale School of Public Health and the Yale Cancer Center. She’s also worked with the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. May has also worked with state legislators to pass public health bills; and mentored young public health professionals, who now occupy important positions at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and elsewhere. She has accomplished this while also conducting extensive research into the complex role of food, nutrition, and health behaviors as determinants of chronic disease risk. She is author or coauthor of more than 200 scientific publications.