Lord Lab

Introduction

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), consisting of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis (UC), happens when the immune system lining the intestines becomes intolerant of the foreign material, most likely the bacteria, that passes through and normally fills the bowels. The Lord lab is investigating how this loss of “tolerance” happens in IBD, to learn how the immune system normally coexists peacefully in close proximity to gut contents.

While still incurable and debilitating, IBD has become much more manageable for some patients in recent years largely due to new and highly specific medications that can often stop immune cells from inflaming the intestines. By carefully examining how such medications specifically affect immune cells in the blood and intestinal biopsies of IBD patients, and correlating these changes with therapeutic success, we provide a better understanding of how IBD happens and, more importantly, how we may ultimately fix it.

Along the way, we are identifying differences in the immune systems of different IBD patients that may explain or predict disease behavior, and serve as “biomarkers” to guide a more personalized approach to treatment.

James Lord
Research Associate Member

James Lord, MD, PhD

Research Associate Member; Principal Investigator, Lord Lab
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Lab Members

Duncan Hindmarch

Duncan Hindmarch

Research Technician, Lord Lab
Ramya Kongla

Ramya Kongala

Research Technician, Lord Lab
Donna Shows

Donna Shows

Research Technician, Lord Lab

Research Projects

Lord Lab Research Project Prev - Effect of Vedolizumab

Effect of Vedolizumab on Immune Cells

We are investigating how the anti-α4β7 drug vedolizumab affects blood and intestinal immune cells.
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Lord Lab Research Project Prev - Cells in IBD

T Cells in Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Correlating T Cell Phenotypes with Pathogenesis in Inflammatory Bowel Disease
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News

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Publication of the Week: PGD2 and CRTH2 counteract Type 2 cytokine–elicited intestinal epithelial responses during helminth infection

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