# Forward Genetic Analysis of Intestinal Homeostasis

> **NIH NIH K08** · UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER · 2020 · $164,160

## Abstract

Abstract
 Inflammatory bowel disease is a debilitating chronic condition, which can affect any part of the
intestine, often having by a relapsing and remitting course. In the United States, there are approximately 1.4
million people are affected by ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease. The resulting inflammation in the colon
and small intestine can lead to pain, infections and bleeding, which ultimately leads to a healthcare burden of
increased hospitalizations, emergency surgeries and most importantly increased mortality. Although a hyper-
inflammatory response to the intestinal micro flora certainly plays a role in the etiology of IBD, the exact
etiology of inflammatory bowel disease, however, is not well understood and is most certainly multifactorial in
nature.
 The maintenance of the mucosal immune system has many levels as has been seen in human
genetics and experimental mouse models. These systems include immune and growth factor as well as
epithelial proliferation, apoptosis, autophagy and cellular metabolism. Perturbation of any of these systems
results in a defect of intestinal homeostasis and ultimately resulting in pathology.
 My recent studies have looked at the genetic factors necessary for maintaining intestinal homeostasis.
Using a screen of randomly mutagenized mice, I have identified and mapped candidate genes for over 30
novel mouse strains that show either susceptibility or resistance to mouse experimental colitis. One such
unexpected pathway involves the de novo synthesis of ceramide and phytoceramide. I plan to use genetically
modified mice in which a key ceramide metabolic gene (Degs2) is deleted or mutated to elucidate a mechanistic
understanding of these pathways and their regulation. The ultimate goal of my research is to determine new
pathways, which can be targeted to better treat intestinal diseases, such as Crohn's and ulcerative colitis.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9929615
- **Project number:** 5K08DK107886-05
- **Recipient organization:** UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Emre Erol Turer
- **Activity code:** K08 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $164,160
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2016-08-04 → 2021-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9929615

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9929615, Forward Genetic Analysis of Intestinal Homeostasis (5K08DK107886-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9929615. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*