Issue 02

From David T. Rubin, MD

“I am excited to introduce my colleague and co-investigator, Ashley Sidebottom, PhD, Metabolomics Platform Director of the Duchossois Family Institute at The University of Chicago. Dr. Sidebottom researches metabolites, small molecules produced or consumed during metabolism. Her innovative research sheds light on the crucial role these metabolites play in digestive health. Our work together explores metabolites as an indicator of the connection between mental health and IBD. She is the Scientific Advisor to the GI Research Foundation’s Emerging Leaders Council. We are thrilled to share her remarkable contributions with you in this issue of Digestible.”

THE RESEARCHER

Sharing the Inspiration

“Ever since my early days as a scientist, I’ve been fascinated by how the trillions of bacteria in our gut affect our health. As an undergraduate researcher at Florida State University, I attended a lecture that introduced me to the exciting field of microbiomes – the complex communities of bacteria living in places like our skin, mouth, and gut. This field was just beginning to gain attention in the early 2000s.

During that lecture, I learned that these bacteria communicate through tiny signals, which influence everything from their defense mechanisms to their movement and food search. Most importantly, I realized that these signals play a crucial role in our gut, where trillions of bacteria reside, and understanding them can have a significant impact on our health, both positively and negatively.

This revelation sparked a burning question in my mind: What are these signals, and what do they do? Determined to find answers, I pursued a PhD in Chemistry at Indiana University, where I discovered new bacterial signals in soil. This research laid the groundwork for my current studies on bacterial signals in humans at the University of Chicago.

Inspiration alone isn’t enough in science – it requires substantial resources. Thanks to the support of the GI Research Foundation, researchers at UChicago are able to lead the way in studying digestive diseases and uncovering the crucial role of microbiomes in our health.”

Family Time

Dr. Sidebottom, who grew up in the Midwest, moved to Florida for high school and college. She now lives in Hyde Park, loves getting out in Chicago to museums and restaurants, and has recently taken up amateur fossil hunting on Morgan Shoal off the Lakeshore path. She especially loves walks with her husband and their two dogs, Riley, a life-loving shepherd, and Pants, a stubborn beagle.

Work Time

With David T. Rubin, MD, Joseph B Kirsner Professor In Medicine; Chief, Section of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, The University of Chicago Medicine; Senior Scientific Advisor to the GI Research Foundation, and other outstanding physician scientists, Dr. Sidebottom and her team at the Duchossois Family Institute explore how bacterial signals influence various diseases, including mental health disorders, inflammatory bowel disease, liver disease, heart transplant success, COVID-19 recovery, Alzheimer’s, and childhood development.

“Blood is really one river among many, carrying tiny signals between the gut and the brain,” explains Dr. Sidebottom. “Some signals in the blood are crucial for healthy brain function, while others indicate whether the gut is healthy or not.”

In Dr. Sidebottom’s work with the Rubin lab, investigating these links in the blood between the gut and brain, she aims to help determine if a patient’s gut flare-up also affects their anxiety and depression. This understanding could allow for quicker intervention, more effective treatment based on newly discovered targets, and the ability to treat the brain to heal the gut, and vice versa.

THE RESEARCH

Dr. Sidebottom and her team closely collaborate with clinical scientists to collect tissue, blood, and stool samples from UChicago patients during clinic visits. The samples are analyzed to identify biomarkers that are associated with disease status, mental health, and anxiety and depression. Dr. Sidebottom and Dr. Rubin have discovered signals that correlate these factors, demonstrating a clear connection between gut health and brain health.

In the future, we hope a simple blood test could profile this gut-brain link. This would help provide better treatments for patients and provide a more comprehensive understanding of overall health.