Andy Wullaert

My research team is interested in the mechanisms orchestrating the communication network between the microbial and dietary triggers present in the intestinal lumen on the one hand, and the various types of stromal and immune cells in the intestinal mucosa on the other hand. We are investigating how host responses modulate the composition of the gut ecosystem, and how this in turn affects host health. This way, we aim to understand how alterations in this communication network, such as occurring during gastrointestinal infections, can affect intestinal inflammation and carcinogenesis as well as extra-intestinal immune homeostasis. For this purpose, we use genetic mouse models with defined mutations in the intracellular signalling pathways that regulate host responses to the gut luminal contents. The lab is part of the ‘Ghent Gut Inflammation Group’, a research consortium around intestinal inflammation at Ghent University.