BIOLOGY OF ALIMENTARY EPITHELIA IN HEALTH AND DISEASE

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The Harvard Medical School and four of its geographically juxtaposed affiliated hospitals, the Beth Israel, Brigham and Women's, Children's Hospital Medical Center, and Massachusetts General Hospital, have joined to establish a digestive disease center whose major emphasis is the more effective study of relationships between structure and function in the alimentary tact. This theme initially emerged from an in-depth analysis of the strengths of the component institutions during the period of an exploratory grant awarded for the purpose of planning an integrated digestive disease center. Since inception of the Center, almost 4 years ago, it has not only become clear that the choice of this theme was an excellent one. Each of the five institutions not only has strong programs in morphology at the cellular and molecular level, but there is also a large group of investigators with active programs to study function in the alimentary tract whose research is strongly potentiated by collaboration with morphologists. Several new and exciting collaborations have already been formed during the past several years of the existence of the Center. Furthermore, it has become increasingly evident that a variety of areas in alimentary tract research have suffered seriously in recent years because of inadequate correlations between structure and function. Interaction and collaboration between clinicians (gastroenterologists surgeons, pathologists) and basic scientists is emphasized. Several core resources serve to enhance the many activities of the investigators of the Center. These include an administrative core, and resources for morphology, electrophysiology, lipid analysis, protein and carbohydrate analysis, electron microprobe analysis, radioimmunoassay and a variety of other modern immunologic techniques. An extensive enrichment program including the availability of grants for pilot/feasibility studies, bi-weekly combined research conferences, annual symposia, named new investigator award, and opportunities to spend short periods of time in selected laboratories outside our own institutions has been proposed. The long-term objectives of this center are to enhance our understanding and knowledge of digestive diseases, and thereby improve the care of patients with these conditions. We believe that this can be accomplished by furthering the interaction and collaboration of basic and clinical scientists working to expand the scope of physiological research with moprhologic correlates, and vice versa.