Grant: Project Grant

Chronic inflammation in the gut, a key feature of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, is thought to be driven by aberrant interactions between the host tissues and the intestinal microbiota. Substances released by the microbiota in a healthy individual may be important in regulating proper host tissue function in the gut. In the current grant, we seek to understand how a specific metabolite/chemical produced by the intestinal microbiota of a healthy individual, but found to be less abundant in individuals with gut diseases, regulates a variety of cell types within the intestine to ultimately control gut inflammatory responses. Identifying the mechanism by which microbe-derived metabolites regulate mucosal inflammatory responses could provide new therapies to treat the chronic intestinal inflammation that is a hallmark of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.