HDDC Brief Overview - Research Focus The Harvard Digestive Disease Center is focused on the cell biology and function of epithelial cells of the alimentary tract, liver, and pancreas, and the complex interactions of epithelia with the microbial flora and subepithelial cells of the lamina propria that manifests itself in mucosal immunity and allergy, innate host defense, digestion and absorption, the development of gastrointestinal neoplasia, and the many other functions of the Gl tract. The biology of epithelial cells and their interactions with subepithelial tissues dictates organ function in the Gl tract and explains how the host relies upon and yet defends against components of the natural environment including food and non-nutrient antigens, the commensal and pathogenic microbial flora, toxins, and microbial products. Development and maintenance of this complex system requires rapidly adaptive mechanisms for cross-talk among the epithelial cells lining the mucosa surface, immunocompetent and supporting cell types in the sub-epithelial space, and the environment. The title of our Center, """"""""Integrated Epithelial and Mucosal Biology"""""""" reflects this research focus. This emphasis on the epithelial cell and its mucosal environment reflects the historical and contemporary strengths of the Harvard Digestive Disease Center and provides a unifying focus for scientists with interests in the diverse functions of the gastrointestinal tract. The Center aims to facilitate multidisciplinary research in this field by providing technical resources, core services, scientific expertise, and an important meeting point to foster close scientific and intellectual relationships among independent investigators in Harvard-affiliated hospitals, the Harvard Medical School and adjacent research institutions in Boston's Longwood Medical Area. We also aim to recruit new and established investigators to the field. Our overarching mission is to foster and expand basic and translational science in fields related to digestive diseases by: connecting people, creating opportunity, and extending resources.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
Type
Center Core Grants (P30)
Project #
5P30DK034854-29
Application #
8578082
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZDK1-GRB-8)
Project Start
Project End
Budget Start
2013-12-01
Budget End
2014-11-30
Support Year
29
Fiscal Year
2014
Total Cost
$373,637
Indirect Cost
$54,026
Name
Children's Hospital Boston
Department
Type
DUNS #
076593722
City
Boston
State
MA
Country
United States
Zip Code
02115
Gornati, Laura; Zanoni, Ivan; Granucci, Francesca (2018) Dendritic Cells in the Cross Hair for the Generation of Tailored Vaccines. Front Immunol 9:1484
Blumberg, Richard S; Lillicrap, David; IgG Fc Immune Tolerance Group (2018) Tolerogenic properties of the Fc portion of IgG and its relevance to the treatment and management of hemophilia Blood 131:2205-2214
Yao, Lina; Seaton, Sarah Craven; Ndousse-Fetter, Sula et al. (2018) A selective gut bacterial bile salt hydrolase alters host metabolism. Elife 7:
Haghighi, Alireza; Krier, Joel B; Toth-Petroczy, Agnes et al. (2018) An integrated clinical program and crowdsourcing strategy for genomic sequencing and Mendelian disease gene discovery. NPJ Genom Med 3:21
Lee, Christine K; Mitchell, Paul D; Raza, Roshan et al. (2018) Validation of Transient Elastography Cut Points to Assess Advanced Liver Fibrosis in Children and Young Adults: The Boston Children's Hospital Experience. J Pediatr 198:84-89.e2
Santus, William; Mingozzi, Francesca; Vai, Marina et al. (2018) Deep Dermal Injection As a Model of Candida albicans Skin Infection for Histological Analyses. J Vis Exp :
Stein, Richard R; Tanoue, Takeshi; Szabady, Rose L et al. (2018) Computer-guided design of optimal microbial consortia for immune system modulation. Elife 7:
Chen, Peng; Tao, Liang; Wang, Tianyu et al. (2018) Structural basis for recognition of frizzled proteins by Clostridium difficile toxin B. Science 360:664-669
Lyons, Jesse; Ghazi, Phaedra C; Starchenko, Alina et al. (2018) The colonic epithelium plays an active role in promoting colitis by shaping the tissue cytokine profile. PLoS Biol 16:e2002417
Shaw, Kelly A; Cutler, David J; Okou, David et al. (2018) Genetic variants and pathways implicated in a pediatric inflammatory bowel disease cohort. Genes Immun :

Showing the most recent 10 out of 869 publications