Leigh Goedeke, Cử nhân, Tiến sĩ

Giải thưởng nghiên cứu thí điểm
$ 50,000 trong hơn một năm

Trường Y khoa Icahn ở Mount Sinai

Targeting hepatocyte-macrophage crosstalk to treat chronic liver disease

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is the most common cause of chronic liver disease worldwide and can progress to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatisis (MASH), liver scaring (fibrosis), and cirrhosis. Despite its growing prevalence, the mechanisms that drive disease progression remain incompletely understood. Our preliminary studies have identified a previously unrecognized metabolic pathway that is impaired in human liver disease and preclinical models of MASH. Disruption of this pathway in liver cells worsens diet-induced inflammation and liver injury, suggesting that it normally protects the liver during metabolic stress. This project will determine how impaired liver metabolism promotes inflammatory signaling and disease progression and test whether restoring healthy liver metabolism using targeted gene delivery can reverse these effects. By defining how metabolic dysfunction drives liver injury and inflammation, this work may uncover new therapeutic strategies for MASH and related chronic liver diseases.