Research in Liver & Digestive Health

We aim to uncover novel insights into the pathophysiological processes of the gut and liver, with a strong focus on translating these discoveries into clinical practice and benefitting the general population.  Our main research focus is on the gut-liver axis, the enterohepatic circulation and the gut microbiome.  A range of conditions, including inflammatory, functional and malignant diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and liver are being investigated. We further extrapolate our research findings to related organ systems such as the cardiovascular and central nervous system. Our work uniquely addresses the inter-organ cross talk and bidirectional interactions with lifestyle, bringing together clinical as well as fundamental experts.

The close collaboration between epidemiologists, geneticists, basic scientists and clinicians as well as the proximity of the MUMC and Maastricht University strongly serve this division’s goal to perform translational research aiming to improve the diagnosis and therapy of the patient in the clinic. Our division generates novel approaches for the diagnosis (biomarkers) and treatment of gut-liver disorders.