Noah Palm, Ph.D.

Research

The Palm lab will identify the compounds produced by gut microbes that interact directly with human cells. Of the thousands of chemical compounds secreted by the trillions of bacteria that colonize our intestines, we currently understand the biological functions of fewer than 0.1 percent. While many of these molecules are used by resident microbes to communicate with one another, a large number are picked up by cells that line the intestine, thereby influencing our physiology and metabolism, and some can even cross the intestinal barrier and act in distant tissues including the brain. Our group has developed a technique that uses human receptor proteins to “fish” for microbial molecules that can be detected by human cells. Now, coupling this approach with cutting-edge techniques in cell and molecular genetics and high-throughput screening, we will isolate microbial products that are recognized by more than 300 different human receptors, including receptors for which no binding partners have ever been found. In pilot studies, we discovered microbial molecules that may play a role in regulating the progression of colon cancer, and our future findings could lead to the development of novel therapies for diverse conditions shaped by our gut microbes.