Fostering innovation and collaboration in liver research

Four pressing concerns drive research on liver diseases at UIC: the escalation in chronic liver disease, the rapid growth of alcoholic and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis worldwide, the increasing incidence of liver cancer and the role of the gut-liver interaction in liver disease. Basic, translational and clinical research at UIC is geared toward finding solutions.

The Liver Program in the Department of Pathology at UIC has brought together an exceptional team of multidisciplinary investigators to study the multiple aspects of liver disease and apply new technologies discovered by basic research to the medical care of patients with liver disease. Through this mission our Program encourages and supports important biomedical research into liver disease; addressing major local, national and international needs, through a cohesive group of researchers from different disciplines involved in liver research.

The Liver Program members are themselves quite diverse. They represent more than 10 departments at UIC and nearby institutions, including the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center and Rush University.

The objectives of the Liver Program are to: 

1. Apply new technologies discovered by basic research to the medical care of patients with liver disease,

2. Form a cohesive group of investigators from different disciplines involved in liver research,

3. Foster excellence and scientific collaboration among its members,

4. Recruit new investigators to the field of hematology, providing a community platform for the exchange of ideas,

5. Enhance national and international recognition of the faculty in the Liver Program involved in both basic and clinical research in liver biology and pathology.

6. Increase funding for liver research at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Research themes:

The overall focus of the Center is on the integrative biology of the liver. Within this framework, the research performed by individual members is quite diverse, ranging from studies of basic liver cell biology to the investigation of liver physiology and pathophysiology in animal models and humans to the evaluation of treatment practices and outcomes for patients with liver disease. The main themes are:

​1.   Liver injury and repair
2.   Hepatic physiology and metabolism
3.   Liver fibrosis
4.   Alcoholic liver disease
5.   Non-alcoholic liver disease
6.   Hepatocellular carcinoma
7.   Hepatitis C
8.   Hepatitis B
9.   Tissue imaging
10.  Cholesterol fluxes
11.  Gut microbiome

Related Resources:

American Gastroenterological Association
American Cancer Society
American Liver Foundation
American Association for the Study of Liver Disease
Empire Liver Foundation
European Association for the Study of the Liver
International Liver Cancer Association
The Foundation for Alcohol Research