Welcome...
The Section of Digestive Diseases and Nutrition at the University of Illinois at Chicago is composed of physicians and scientists involved in the diagnosis, treatment, and study of patients with diseases of the liver and gastrointestinal (GI) tract. This includes the treatment of, and research into, diseases affecting the esophagus, stomach, liver, gallbladder, pancreas, small and large intestine (colon), and rectum.
Section
Highlights
Spotlight On:
Andrew Weflen's Fight Against EPEC
Andrew Weflen, a graduate student and the recipient of a COM Research Day (2008) Award, is determined to make headway into deciphering bacterial infection strategy. His graduate studies are aimed at understanding the interactions of the bacterial protein EspF and their functional significance.
 Enteropathic E. coli (EPEC), implicated in over two million deaths per year due to severe diarrhea, is the research focus in Dr. Gail Hecht's lab. The bacteria attach to the intestinal mucosal cells and inject a variety of virulence factors via a type three seccretion system (T3SS). The T3SS is essentially a molecular syringe, consisting of a large complex of proteins that forms a hollow tube, which directly couples the bacterial and host cell cytoplasms. Over twenty effectors are known to be secreted via the EPEC T3SS into host cells, where they manipulate various host signaling pathways, ultimately promoting breakdown of intestinal barrier function.
By examining the consequences of EspF-SNX9 interaction, Andrew discovered that SNX9 can be manipulated by EspF to induce endocytosis of bacteria via a clathrin-independent mechanism. This suggests that SNX9 can also regulate clathrin-independent endocytosis and is likely to be a more general regulator of endocytic trafficking than previously thought. His work, coupled with other exciting discoveries made in Hecht's lab, have implications for our understanding of bacterial pathogenesis.
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