The Gretchen Diehl Lab

The intestinal immune system faces a number of unique challenges due to continuous exposure to rapidly changing exogenous factors including diet and intestinal microbes. Proper calibration of responses is needed to clear invading pathogens as well as repair damage. Over enthusiastic responses within the intestine impair barrier repair, amplifying damage and potentially lead to systemic infection or chronic inflammatory disease including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). We find that the intestinal microbiota and dietary factors can promote or inhibit proper immune regulation. As such, we seek to define molecular and cellular pathways regulated by the microbiota, dietary, and tissue factors that are required to maintain homeostasis within the intestine. In defining upstream signals, we are working to understand microbial pathways and how they modulate tissue immunity. In parallel, we seek to delineate how these networks are disrupted in inflammatory conditions.