Changing Lives Through Groundbreaking Science
Using robust scientific and lay review, in the 2023 cycle, the GI Research Foundation awarded $550,000 to six investigators at the University of Chicago for novel research projects.
2023 Competitive Grant Cycle Awards
Using robust scientific and lay review, in the 2023 cycle, the GI Research Foundation awarded $550,000 to six investigators at the University of Chicago for novel research projects.
Reprogramming Stem Cells to Heal Inflammation
Cambrian Liu, PhD
THE PROBLEM
Regenerative medicine is the ability to regenerate and repair diseased organs and is the dream of modern medicine. Regenerative therapies can take many forms – growing new organs in the lab, injecting stem cells at the sites of injury, or engineering molecular bandages – yet there is no consensus on the types of biological signals or cellular targets that should be leveraged to promote regenerative capacity.
THE QUESTION
The intestinal microbiome can be modulated to promote regeneration throughout the gastrointestinal tract. Modifying the microbiome to imbue it with pro-healing properties can be performed non-invasively, while providing a “long reach” of effects through the diverse and fundamental roles that these microbes play in ensuring optimal health.
THE RESEARCH PLAN
Develop multiple tools to study:
- how individual cells make decisions about their developmental paths and eventual roles within an organism and
- the effects of different types of microbes and microbiome-associated metabolites on the regenerative process, resolved at the level of individual stem cells, throughout the gastrointestinal system.
THE GOALS
If a regeneration-promoting microbial community could be found, this could be used to repair damaged tissue or prevent tissue damage in the first place. This would impact ongoing treatment for debilitating gastrointestinal diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, chronic liver disease, and pancreatitis, thus improving patient outcomes.
“Using a combination of scientific and lay review, the GI Research Foundation has awarded $550,000 in grants. We are so proud and privileged to be in partnership with the University of Chicago Medicine’s Digestive Diseases Center. Our competitive grant program supports novel research projects led by its investigators. This partnership provides us with extraordinary opportunities to be a first-in funder of groundbreaking ideas and has resulted in millions in funding from the National Institutes of Health. We are excited about the promise of these funded projects.”
