Research
About our research:
It is clear that the limited understanding of the repair and adaptive processes in the developing intestine presents formidable hurdles to establishing translational therapeutic approaches for neonatal/pediatric intestinal diseases and consequently to improving pediatric health and development. My inter-disciplinary background based in GI pathophysiology and cell biology, experimental model systems, and translational cell-based therapeutics have allowed me to envision a unique opportunity to address the significant barriers in necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) disease, intestinal development and regeneration, and neonatal/pediatric intestinal cell biology. Overall, I am building a research program focused on addressing the interwoven challenges of neonatal intestinal health and disease, therapeutic development, and feasible preclinical model platforms for broad pediatric/neonatal intestinal research. In this capacity, I am currently pursuing synergistic projects which incorporate rigorous basic science elements complemented with a strong translational ethos to 1) delineate the reparative cellular and molecular mechanisms in the neonatal intestine and NEC disease, 2) develop advanced PSC-based therapeutic approaches for clinical translation in premature infants, 3) develop tractable high throughput model platforms for ‘preclinical-to-translational’ NEC and neonatal intestinal research, and 4) develop non-invasive imaging methods to feasibly assess neonatal intestinal health.
Reparative cellular and molecular mechanisms in the neonatal intestine and NEC disease
Defining the PSC-induced cellular/molecular repair mechanisms to guide therapeutic developments and expand our understanding of neonatal repair pathophysiology
Advanced PSC-based therapeutic approaches for improved clinical translation in premature infants
Advancing our understanding of neonatal epithelial repair in human NEC and guide advanced ‘cell-free’ NEC therapeutics
High-throughput model systems for ‘preclinical-to-translational’ NEC and neonatal intestinal research
Providing a platform for more diverse questions of the impacts of intestinal cell pathophysiology, signaling, and the microbiota in neonatal development and disease
Non-invasive imaging for biophysical indicators of neonatal intestinal health and function
Developing new advanced non-invasive imaging methods for intestinal disease that presents significant translational opportunity to improve quality of care in neonatal/pediatric patients