Paul A. Dawson PhD

Dr. Paul A. Dawson’s research is focused on elucidating the physiologic and molecular mechanisms controlling bile acid homeostasis and their relationship to the pathogenesis of disease. The major goals are to understand how dysfunction of the gut-liver axis contributes to hepatic, gastrointestinal, and metabolic diseases and to exploit those insights to develop new preventative measures and therapies. These efforts include investigating the gut microbiota’s role and its untapped therapeutic potential.

In 2014, Dr. Dawson moved along with his research group to Emory University to further pursue these goals. The scope of the health problems studied ranges from rare monogenic intestinal and liver disorders (Primary Bile Acid Malabsorption, Progressive Familial Intrahepatic Cholestasis) to Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (the most common liver abnormality in children). Toward that end, the Lab utilizes a wide variety of approaches, including Genomics, Metabolomics, Gnotobiotics, and Novel Mouse Models.