Amanda Ziegler Receives NIH K Award

Dr. Amanda Ziegler has been awarded an Office of the Director/Office of Research Infrastructure Programs (OD/ORIP) Special Emphasis Research Career Award (SERCA).  Her grant, Postnatal Development of Intestinal Barrier Repair is specifically awarded by the National Institute of Health (NIH) to veterinarians beginning their careers.  The goal of this study is to examine postnatal development of glial-epithelial interactions in regulating barrier maintenance and repair using in vitro techniques.

“Intestinal ischemic injury to the epithelial barrier is associated with poorer survival outcomes in younger patients and, in our highly comparative pig model of intestinal ischemia, neonate epithelium fails to repair while juvenile epithelium repairs rapidly. Remarkably, direct application of juvenile intestinal tissue can induce repair in neonates, but the mechanisms responsible for defective neonatal restitution and the components of the juvenile mucosa responsible for its rescue are unknown and form the basis of this research. Understanding how repair mechanisms develop after birth will foster development of novel therapeutic strategies for treatment of neonatal patients affected by ischemic intestinal disease.”

Congratulations, Dr. Ziegler!