GI Sampling and Monitoring Tools/Devices for Diet-Host-Microbiome Interactions
September 2019 Council
Lead Division/Office
DDN, ONR
Point(s) of Contact
Padma Maruvada, Ph.D.
Executive Summary
The gastrointestinal tract serves as the primary site for nutrient sensing, digestion, absorption, and metabolism and acts as a selective barrier for a variety of external stimuli, including microbiota and environmental agents and transmits these signals to other vital organs, including the brain. The metabolic end points resulting from host and microbial interactions are confined to discrete anatomical regions of the GI tract. However, current endoscopic procedures cannot access many of these anatomical regions to allow detailed characterization of such interactions. This initiative supports the development of tools/devices for sampling or monitoring gastric mucosal- diet and microbial interactions.