Investigation of the Environmental and Genetic Basis of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) through the Emory NAFLD Research Group: a Multidisciplinary Project Uniting Liver Experts
Principal Investigators: Diego Martin, MD; Miriam Vos, MD
Co-Investigators: Xiaoping Hu; PhD, Rene Romero, MD; Jennifer Buechner, RD, CSP; Enrique Martinez, MD; James Spivey, MD; Frank Anania, MD; Andy Muir, MD; Mark Bouzyk, PhD; Veda Johnson, MD; Thomas Heffron, MD; Bahig Shehata, MD
This is a cross-departmental collaborative project funded by the Woodruff Fund for one year to support the initiatives of Visions 2012. The departmental contributors include members from Radiology, Pediatrics, Medicine, Center for Medical Genomics, General Pediatrics, Transplant Surgery and Pathology.
Obesity and liver disease related to NAFLD is highly prevalent and represents a major and growing disease burden in the U.S., including children. The etiology of disease, the factors leading to individual risk and therapy are not yet well understood. This project objective includes the formulation of a comprehensive liver expert multi-disciplinary program to address these problems. Successful implementation and validation of imaging diagnostic technology in pediatric and adult NAFLD patients will allow us to pursue predictive modeling, evaluate the genetic basis of the disease, investigate its cellular-biochemical composition, therapeutic strategies, and facilitate therapy monitoring. Current technology is not suitable for these endeavors.