RESEARCH & DISCOVERIES

The McElroy Lab has had a long-standing interest in understanding the injury and repair mechanisms of the developing small intestine and specifically how this relates to neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis.  The laboratory has made seminal discoveries linking Paneth cells and goblet cells to the protection of the immature intestinal tract, has developed several complementary novel models of necrotizing enterocolitis that are shedding light on alternative pathways to develop NEC-like injury, and has begun to investigate the link between maternal chorioamnionitis and subsequent intestinal disease of offspring.