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Pharmacology & Chemical Biology Seminar Series
2/3/2022 - 12:00 PM-1:00 PM
"Disruption of microbiota and intestinal epithelial interactions as a key driver of non-communicable diseases"

Mariana X. Byndloss, DVM, PhD 
Assistant Professor
Department of Pathology, Microbiology, and Immunology
Vanderbilt Univ Medical Center

Recent research has demonstrated that the gut microbiota, the largest microbial community inhabiting our body, plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of various diseases, ranging from cardiovascular disease and cancer to neuropathies. Although exciting, the microbiota field is in its infancy, and little is known about how this complex community and its host interact with one another. The research in Dr. Byndloss' laboratory proposes establishing novel molecular mechanisms responsible for the imbalance in the microbial community (dysbiosis), which connects significant players in chronic inflammatory diseases' pathogenesis. Dr. Byndloss is particularly interested in how inflammation-mediated changes in intestinal epithelial function lead to gut dysbiosis and increased risk of chronic inflammatory disorders, namely obesity,  cardiovascular disease, and colorectal cancer.