People with conditions such as colitis or irritable bowel syndrome may be more vulnerable to Alzheimer’s disease or stroke. Likewise, people that have neurological conditions or have suffered a stroke are more likely to develop gut disorders. UM’s Amanda Kerr is leading research into the bidirectional gut-brain axis in these patients.

Kerr’s team is focusing on how proteins called inflammasomes are transported from the brain to the gut through extracellular vesicles—small particles released into bodily fluids, such as blood, cerebrospinal fluid, and stool. In people with Alzheimer’s disease, inflammasome activation in the brain and gut increases. Once inflammasome pathways are activated, they can trigger a form of cell death in both brain and gut.

• Helen Bramlett
• Robert Keane
• Dalton Dietrich
• Nadine Kerr