Research

Allergic disease is increasing in prevalence in industrialized nations. Children with atopic dermatitis are at an increased risk of developing food allergies. In close collaboration with Dr. Andrew Wang, we are studying the impact of perturbations at epithelial barriers (cutaneous and intestinal) by physical or chemical factors on the development of allergic disease, primarily atopic dermatitis and food allergies. Using a broad range of techniques in the lab, including mouse modeling, molecular biology and human translational studies, the lab is studying the role of environmental xenobiotics in the development of food allergies and atopic dermatitis, as well as the role of the cutaneous barrier in the development of food allergies. Given the rising incidence of allergic disease and the known association between the development of food allergies and atopic dermatitis, our work has the potential to provide mechanistic insight into the increased incidence of food allergies in industrialized countries and into the development of food allergies in individuals with atopic dermatitis, which may lead to novel therapeutic interventions or preventative measures.

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic, painful, and debilitating inflammatory disorder that severely impacts quality of life. HS has heterogeneous clinical manifestations and no universally effective treatments. Our lab is interested in studying different disease presentations and how they inform our understanding of disease pathogenesis and therapeutic response. We are also interested in how nutrients and environmental factors affect the development and disease course. Utilizing spatial transcriptomics on human tissue, we hope to start to address these unknown questions in the field.