Research Training Experiences

The Mucosal Immunology and Developmental Gastroenterology Laboratories have had a twenty-five year experience in training undergraduate students, medical students, graduate students and postdoctoral/pediatric gastroenterology fellows in mucosal immunology and developmental gastroenterology. Many of these students have gone on to a research career in gastrointestinal immunology. Background information is available for a research training experience at each of these levels.

Undergraduate College Students

In general, college students who are biochemistry, biology, chemistry, or premedical, majors can apply for a summer fellowship in the summer following their junior year in college, e.g., after junior level courses in biochemistry, biology and other related disciplines, or as part of the DePauw University Science Research Fellows (SRF) Program. These Science Fellows can plan to spend a summer and a semester either preceding (spring semester) or following (fall semester) their summer in the laboratory. Our experience with this program and with other undergraduates has allowed these students to decide on a career in medicine or science. Many pre-medical students as a result of the summer or summer/semester experience have decided to apply for MD/PhD programs rather than MD programs after the experience. Any student interested in a summer fellowship should contact Dr. Allan Walker (wwalker@partners.org) by the January before the anticipated summer experience in order to ensure placement and funding for the fellowship. Science Fellows from DePauw University should contact the Director of the Science Research Fellows Program via scifellows@depauw.edu in the semester preceding the planned research experience to ensure SRF credit for the internship experience. Other DePauw University students interested in linking a semester with a research summer in the laboratory need to be planning a year in advance and the Science Research Fellows office can help them navigate the university application process.

Since 1994, this laboratory has had a close relationship with the Science Research Fellows Program at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. Thirty students have come to Boston to take advantage of the biomedical laboratory experience, witness pediatric medical rounds on the wards of MGH Hospital for Children, or shadow medical doctors in various subspecialties during winter term. These undergraduate students have gone on to medical schools throughout the USA as medical students or as MD-PhD students (Vijay Rao, University of South Carolina; David Peaper, Yale University; Cheryl Young, Emory University School of Medicine). Others have chosen to get a PhD degree in molecular biology, immunology, or nutrition.

List of DePauw students since 1994:

Students Dan Schloss and Lindsey Schroeder

Medical Students Fellowship

Generally medical students can participate in a summer research experience after their first year in medical school and can obtain a position in the laboratory by contacting either Dr. Allan Walker (wwalker@partners.org) or individual laboratory investigators. To ensure funding, contacts need to be made six months in advance.

Graduate Students

PhD and MD/PhD graduate students in the Immunology Program or Microbiology Program can contact individual investigators with permission from their advisors to consider a research plan for their thesis. Please make contact with individual investigators for this purpose.

Postdoctoral Fellows

Currently there are fourteen postdoctoral fellows in our laboratory (see sidebar). They have generally made direct contact with a principal investigator in the laboratory to secure a position. We also have several postdoctoral PhDs and MDs from outside of the United States who come for a period of two to three years. These individuals are funded by a variety of vehicles (NRSA’s, training grant slots, foundation and unrestricted grants from industry). To obtain more information about our program contact either Dr. Allan Walker or individual investigators. For general information contact Ms. Suzzette McCarron.

Students Michael Gentry, Allyson McCloed, and David Moore.

Student Publications

Cherayil BJ, McCormick BA, Bosley J. Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium-dependent regulation of inducible nitric oxide synthase expression in macrophages by invasins SipB, SipC and SipD and the effector SopE2. Infect. Immun. 2000; 68:5567-74.

Nanthakumar NN, Klopcic CE, Fernandez I, Walker WA. Normal and glucocorticoid-induced development of the human small intestinal xenograft. Am J Physiol, Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2003;285:R162-70.

Huang FC, Werne A, Li Q, Galyov EE, Walker WA, Cherayil, B.J. Cooperative interactions between flagellin and SopE2 in the epithelial IL-8 response to Salmonella. Infect Immun  2004; 72: 5052-5062.

Nanthakumar NN, Young C, Ko J-S, Meng D, Chen J, Buie T, Walker WA. Glucocorticoid responsiveness in the developing human intestine: A possible role in the prevention of necrotizing enterocolitis. Am J Physiol, Gastrointest Liver Physiol 2005; 288:G85-G92.

Hurley BP, NL Williams, McCormick BA.  2006.  Involvement of Phospholipase A2 in Pseudomonas aeruginosa Mediated PMN Trans-epithelial Migration.  Am J Physiol Lung Cell Mol Physiol 2006; Apr;290:L703-9.

Meng D, Newburg DS, Young C, Baker A, Tonkonogy  SL, Sartor RB, Walker WA, Nanthakumar NN. Bacterial symbionts induce a fut2-dependent fucosylated niche on colonic epithelium via ERK and JNK signaling. Am J Physiol, Gastrointest Liver Physiol 2007 (in press).

Ko J-S, Hass M, Scheidler L, Walker WA, Nanthakumar NN.  Lactobacillus prevents the invasion and inflammatory response caused by enteric pathogens in the human intestinal epithelium. J Nutr (in preparation).

Abstracts

Hurley BP, Williams NL, McCormick BA. Neutrophil Transmigration across Lung Epithelial Monolayers in Response to P. aeruginosa Involves Phospholipase A2. [Abstract]. Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. 2004; 169:7, p.A472

Hurley BP, AL Goodman, Murphy P S, Lory,  McCormick BA.  The Two-Component Sensor Response Regulator RoxR / RoxS Plays a Role in Pseudomonas aeruginosa Adhesion to Airway Epithelial Cells.[Abstract] American Society for Microbiology.  Toronto, Ontario, Canada.  May 2007.

Meng D, Zhu W, Zhang K, Pillai R, Baker A, Martyn S, Walker WA, Nanthakumar N. Commensal bacteria promote recovery for DSS colitis by inducing Mip2-dependent neutrophil recruitment.  Gastroenterology 2007; 132:A534.

Meng D, Newburg DS, Young CA, Baker A, Tonkonogy SL, Sartor RB, Walker  WA, Nanthakumar N.  Bacterial symbionts induce their fucosylated niche in mammalian colon via a TLR-4 sentinel activating ERK and Jnk signaling.   Gastroenterology 2007; 132:A535.

Nanthakumar N, Theva M, Shivakoti R, Meng D, Newburg DS, Walker WA.  Salmonella thyphimurium utilizes a mannosyl epitope for infecting epithelial cells and a fucoysl epitope for infecting lymphoid cells in the pathogenesis of Salmonellosis.  Gastroenterology 2007; A712.

* Shivakoti R, Theva M, Meng D, Walker WA, Nanthakumar NN.  Salmonella typhimurium bind specific glycoconjugate receptors on human epithelium during infection. FASEBJ 2007; 21:A587.

* Finalist in student abstract prize from the American Society of Physiology

New Hampshire, Summer 2006