Key investigator
- Elizabeth J. Videlock, MD, PhD
The gut-brain axis in Parkinson's disease
Exciting new findings have identified a role for the gastrointestinal tract in the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease (PD). My laboratory studies the gut-brain axis in PD using clinical samples, animal models and isolated cells from PD models. Our goal is to identify gastrointestinal biomarkers and therapeutic targets that may eventually allow early diagnosis of PD and prevention of motor symptoms.
Current research projects
- Gene expression profiling of the gut-brain axis in mice overexpressing human wild type alpha-synuclein (ASO)
- The role of colonic inflammation and enteric glial cells in PD
Funding and support
Current Funding
- Chan Zuckerberg Initiative / Neurogeneration Challenge The Role of Pink1/Parkin in the Intestinal Epithelium
- UCLA Vatche and Tamar Manoukian Division of Digestive Diseases
Completed Funding
- CURE: Digestive Diseases Research Center Pilot and Feasibility Studies (P30 DK41301)
- UCLA Claude Pepper Older Americans Independence Center Rapid Pilot Program
Acknowledgements
- The Banner Sun Health Research Institute Brain and Body Donation Program of Sun City, Arizona which is supported by the NIH (U24 NS072026, P30 AG19610), the Arizona Department of Health Services and Biomedical Research Commission and the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, for provision of colon tissue
- The NIH Loan Repayment Program
- The Barbara and Joel Marcus Foundation GI Fellowship Seed Grant
- The UCLA GI Fellowship Training Grant (T32DK07180)
In the news
- Dr. Videlock receives neurodegeneration collaborative pairs pilot project award
- Dr. Videlock received a Neurodegeneration Collaborative Pairs Pilot Project Award of $127,500 from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative to study the role of Pink1/Parkin in the intestinal epithelium in collaboration with Ming Guo, MD, PhD, UCLA Department of Neurology. The Parkinson’s associated genes, Pink1/Parkin, have been implicated in mitochondrial function of neurons, but are also expressed in the gut, although little is known about their functional role. Drs. Videlock and Guo will use colon biopsy-derived tissue cultures and organoids to investigate the role of Pink1/Parkin signaling in mitochondrial function in the intestinal epithelium.The project is listed on the Neurogeneration Challenge Network website.
- UCLA STAR Program alumni embark on their careers as clinican-scientists
About Dr. Videlock
Dr. Elizabeth (Beth) Videlock grew up in Philadelphia and earned a BS in chemistry from Yale University. She studied medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Dr. Videlock began her research career in the field of the gut-brain axis during medical school under the mentorship of Dr. Lin Chang in the UCLA G. Oppenheimer Center for Neurobiology of Stress and Resilience.
She then trained in internal medicine at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. Dr. Videlock returned to UCLA for her gastroenterology fellowship as a Specialty Training and Advanced Research (STAR) fellow. Through the STAR program, Dr. Videlock completed a PhD in the laboratory of Charalabos "Harry" Pothoulakis with co-mentorship from Dr. Chang. Her doctoral research used translational and cell culture approaches to study peripheral molecular changes in IBS.
Dr. Videlock joined the UCLA Vatche and Tamar Manoukian Division of Digestive Diseases faculty in 2019. Her laboratory is within the UCLA Center for Inflammatory Bowel Diseases.
View Dr. Videlock's complete list of published work
