Gastroenterology and Hepatology Research
Our Latest Notable Research
No. 15 in the Nation for the Gastroenterology and GI Surgery Program
The Children’s Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition Program ranks among the nation’s top 20 pediatric hospitals on the U.S. News & World Report list of “Best Children’s Hospitals” for Gastroenterology and GI Surgery. The report ranks hospitals for excellence in outcomes, program structure and national reputation.
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Emory University, Our Primary Research and Academic Partner
Children’s and Emory University School of Medicine partner together on clinical trials, residencies and fellowships. More than 500 physicians hold titles at both institutions. Our research program has ranked in the top five nationally for National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding for nearly a decade.
Learn About EmoryRanked No. 15 in the nation for Gastroenterology and GI Surgery, with one of the leading pediatric hepatology and nutrition programs in the country, Children’s GI, Hepatology and Nutrition Program is actively involved in collaborative research studies striving to foster discoveries that will improve outcomes for patients across the country. We are also training the next generation of specialists through our Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition Fellowship Program.
Gastroenterology highlights
- Recipient of the prestigious Pediatric T32 Grant
- One of the most robust inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) research programs in the country, led by Subra Kugathasan, MD
- Exploration into innovative technologies such as AI/machine learning, IBD genetics and organoids
- Clinical and translational IBD research such as CAMEO and CAPTURE studies
- One of the country’s largest enrollers for ImproveCareNow
Hepatology highlights
- One of the leading patient enrolling centers in the Childhood Liver Disease Research Network (ChiLDREN), an NIH funded U01 study
- Integral part of NIH funded studies such as iMALT (Medication Adherence in Liver Transplant patients) and TRIUMPH (pediatric acute liver failure study)
- Several ongoing translational studies in autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC)
- Leader in transition of care research in the STARZL Network
- Multiple Phase 3 clinical trials in children with liver disease
- Basic and translational studies in the role of bile acids in the pathogenesis of liver disease and associated disorders, including developing novel bile acid therapies
- Basic science studies in cholestasis-associated kidney injury (cholemic nephropathy) and elucidating the hepatic and renal protective effects of systemic bile acid transport inhibitors in pre-clinical models
- Advanced research in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)
Clinical highlights
- One of the largest pediatric liver transplant programs in the country with exceptional outcomes and short wait lists as well as advanced surgical techniques such as living donor transplantation and the use of technical variants
- Management of portal hypertension with advanced surgical shunt techniques
- Advanced endoscopy program performing more than 120 endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatographies (ERCPs) in 2022
- High-volume IBD program with some of the country’s top treatments
Training highlights
- Expanding our Gastroenterology Fellowship Program by three fellows per year
- One-year advanced Transplant Hepatology Fellowship
- Medical education opportunities, including Milestones 2.0 and Entrustable Professional Activities
Our team is committed to advancing care for pediatric patients across the country. Physicians in our program conduct multiple studies on a national level and are involved in collaborative efforts that further expand our understanding of liver disease and disorders of the gastrointestinal tract.
Our Research Areas of Focus
- Acute liver failure
- Bile acid
- Biliary atresia
- Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis
- Chronic pancreatitis in children
- Cystic fibrosis-associated liver disease
- Eosinophilic esophagitis
- Fatty liver disease
- Hepatitis B and C therapy in children
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Liver transplantation
- Adolescent transplant patients’ adherence to their medication and lifestyle regimen and transitioning them from pediatric- to adult-centered care
- Nutritional status after liver transplantation
- Post-transplantation medical issues
- Transplant rejection and immunologic tolerance (acceptance by the body)
- Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
- Neonatal alloimmune liver disease
- Neonatal cholestatic liver disease
- Noninvasive diagnosis of liver disease using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
- Portal hypertension
Research collaborations
ChiLDREN is a collaborative network organized to study rare childhood liver diseases, sponsored by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). Children’s is among only 16 pediatric centers in the country to participate in the network.
- Facilitating the discovery of causes of childhood liver disease.
- Developing new diagnostics tests or disease markers.
- Developing treatment options for children with liver disease and those who undergo liver transplant.
- Training the next generation of investigators in rare pediatric liver diseases.
- Alagille syndrome
- Alpha 1 antitrypsin deficiency (A-1AT)
- Bile acid synthesis and metabolic defects
- Biliary atresia
- Cystic fibrosis liver disease
- Idiopathic neonatal hepatitis
- Mitochondrial hepatopathies
- Progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis
- Prospective Database of Infants With Cholestasis (PROBE): A study of infants up to age 6 months with jaundice from liver disease.
- Biliary Atresia Study in Infants and Children (BASIC): A study to gather information on children with biliary atresia to understand what happens after the Kasai surgery.
- Longitudinal Studies in Children With Cholestasis (LOGIC): A study that involves children with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, Alagille syndrome, progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis and bile acid defects.
- Longitudinal Studies of Mitochondrial Hepatopathies (MITOHEP): A study to gather information about liver problems in mitochondrial diseases and in fatty oxidation defects.
Children’s is the largest enroller of patients in ImproveCareNow, a national outcomes and quality registry for children with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Publications from Children’s providers include the below:
Learn more about ImproveCareNow.
The Immunosuppression Withdrawal for Stable Pediatric Liver Transplant Recipients (iWith) clinical trial studied the withdrawal of immunosuppression (anti-rejection) medications in children who have received liver transplants.
The NASH Clinical Research Network is a NIDDK-sponsored collaborative network that focuses on the causes of, contributing factors to, history of, complications of and therapy for NASH. NASH is caused by a buildup of fat in the liver, which results in inflammation and damage to the liver.
View publications from the national collaborative study of infants, children and adolescents with acute liver failure.
SPLIT is a cooperative effort among leading pediatric transplant centers in the U.S. and Canada to advance the science of liver transplants in children.
Physician Leadership
- Cary G Sauer, MD, Division Chief, Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition
- Antoinette Amevor, MD, Medical Director, Intestinal Rehabilitation
- Jose M Garza, MD, Medical Director, Neurogastroenterology and Motility
- Nitika Gupta, MD, Clinical Director, Hepatology; Medical Director, Liver Transplant Program; Joseph H. Moss Chair, Pediatric Hepatology and Liver Transplant
- Dana Michelle Hines Dykes, MD, Medical Director, ImproveCareNow, Scottish Rite Hospital
- Barbara McElhanon, MD, Co-Director, Feeding Program
- Bhargava Mullapudi MD, Surgical Director, Abdominal Transplant
- Joanna Niklinska-Schirtz, MD, Medical Director, ImproveCareNow, Arthur M. Blank Hospital
- Elaine Odiase, MD, Medical Director, Advanced and General Endoscopy; Co-Medical Director, ERCP; Clinical Director, Trans-nasal Endoscopy
- Chathrucken Rajendra, MD, Associate Medical Director, Endoscopy
- Rene Romero, MD, System Medical Director, Solid Organ Transplant
- Vivek Shenoy, MD, Medical Director, Disorders of Gut Brain Interaction
- Field F Willingham, MD, Medical Director, Therapeutic Endoscopy; Co-Medical Director, ERCP
Children's Physician Group–Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition
Children's Physician Group is the largest pediatric multispecialty physician practice in Georgia with more than 500 doctors and 400 advanced practice providers who are employed by Children’s or serve as faculty members at Emory University School of Medicine. Children’s Physician Group–Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition providers include:
Gastroenterologists
- Adjowa Amevor, MD
- Katherine Black, MD
- Lauren Bloom, MD
- Kelsey Chatman, MD
- Reuven Zev Cohen, MD
- Joel Friedlander, DO
- Subramaniam Kugathasan, MD, Scientific Director, IBD
- David Lee, MD
- Chrissy Lopez, MD
- Barbara McElhanon, MD
- Shaunte McKay, MD
- Janna Niklinska-Schirtz, MD
- Elaine Odiase, MD
- Teresa Oh, MD
- Sharmistha Rudra, MD
- Cary G Sauer, MD
- Vivek Shenoy, MD
- Chathruckan Rajendra, MD
- James Stevens, MD
- Tsega Temtem, MD
Hepatologists
Advanced Endoscopists
Advanced Practice Providers
- Seyi Adeyemi-Bajo, PA
- Jenissa Cortés, MS, RD, PA-C
- Michelle Dinser Worthington, CPNP
- Sarah Jeffcoat, DNP, RN, CPNP-PC
- Victoria Marcy, PA-C
- Whitney Mink, MHS, PA-C
- Charlotte Young, PA-C
Psychologists
- Courtney Breiner, PhD, Gastroenterology
- Jessica Buzenski, PhD, Gastroenterology
- Bonney Reed, PhD, Gastroenterology
Private Practice Gastroenterologists in Our Program
We work closely with the following private practice physicians in our program to lead research, develop specialized programs and deliver seamless care to patients at our hospitals.
- Jeffrey A Blumenthal, MD
- Dana Michelle Hines Dykes, MD
- Jose M Garza, MD
- Benjamin D Gold, MD
- Jay A Hochman, MC
- Tatyana Hofmekler, MD
- Jeffery D Lewis, MD
- Larry Glen Lewis Jr, MD
- Steven Liu, MD
- Seth B Marcus, MD
- Tejas R Mehta, MD
- Aminu Mohammed, MD
- Nirav R Patel, MD
- Dinesh G Patel, MD
- Asiya Shakir, MD
- Olga M Sherrod, MD
- Jordan H Weitzner, MD
Clinical Trials
Children’s is involved in more than 1,200 clinical trials locally, nationally and abroad. Find or join one of our trials. Narrow your search by including a specific condition or disease.
Find Our Trials
Clinical risk factors for body composition deficits in children with inflammatory bowel disease. Alexander E, Stein R, Rudra S, Albenberg L, Zemel B. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2025 May 19.
Progression of Pediatric Crohn's Disease Is Associated With Anti-Tumor Necrosis Factor Timing and Body Mass Index Z-Score Normalization. Geem D, Hercules D, Pelia RS, Venkateswaran S, Griffiths A, Noe JD, Dotson JL, Snapper S, Rabizadeh S, Rosh JR, Baldassano RN, Markowitz JF, Walters TD, Ananthakrishnan A, Sharma G, Denson LA, Hyams JS, Kugathasan S. Clin Gastroenteol Hepatol. 2024 Feb.
Pandemic-Related Social Disruption and Well-Being in Pediatric Gastrointestinal Diseases. Robbertz AS, Cohen LL, Armistead LP, Reed B. J Pediatr Psychol. 2022 Sep 15.
Human Intestinal Myofibroblasts DepositED COLLAGEN VI EnhanceS Adhesiveness for T cells - A Novel Mechanism for Maintenance of Intestinal Inflammation. Lin SN, Musso A, Wang J, Mukherjee PK, West GA, Mao R, Lyu R, Li J, Zhao S, Elias M, Haberman Y, Denson LA, Kugathasan S, Chen MH, Czarnecki D, Dejanovic D, Le HT, Chandra J, Lipman J, Steele SR, Nguyen QT, Fiocchi C, Rieder F. Matrix Biol. 2022 Sep 12.
Large-scale sequencing identifies multiple genes and rare variants associated with Crohn's disease susceptibility. Sazonovs A, Stevens CR, Venkataraman GR, Yuan K, Avila B, Abreu MT, Ahmad T, Allez M, Ananthakrishnan AN, Atzmon G, Baras A, Barrett JC, Barzilai N, Beaugerie L, Beecham A, Bernstein CN, Bitton A, Bokemeyer B, Chan A, Chung D, Cleynen I, Cosnes J, Cutler DJ, Daly A, Damas OM, Datta LW, Dawany N, Devoto M, Dodge S, Ellinghaus E, Fachal L, Farkkila M, Faubion W, Ferreira M, Franchimont D, Gabriel SB, Ge T, Georges M, Gettler K, Giri M, Glaser B, Goerg S, Goyette P, Graham D, Hämäläinen E, Haritunians T, Heap GA, Hiltunen M, Hoeppner M, Horowitz JE, Irving P, Iyer V, Jalas C, Kelsen J, Khalili H, Kirschner BS, Kontula K, Koskela JT, Kugathasan S, Kupcinskas J, Lamb CA, Laudes M, Lévesque C, Levine AP, Lewis JD, Liefferinckx C, Loescher BS, Louis E, Mansfield J, May S, McCauley JL, Mengesha E, Mni M, Moayyedi P, Moran CJ, Newberry RD, O'Charoen S, Okou DT, Oldenburg B, Ostrer H, Palotie A, Paquette J, Pekow J, Peter I, Pierik MJ, Ponsioen CY, Pontikos N, Prescott N, Pulver AE, Rahmouni S, Rice DL, Saavalainen P, Sands B, Sartor RB, Schiff ER, Schreiber S, Schumm LP, Segal AW, Seksik P, Shawky R, Sheikh SZ, Silverberg MS, Simmons A, Skeiceviciene J, Sokol H, Solomonson M, Somineni H, Sun D, Targan S, Turner D, Uhlig HH, van der Meulen AE, Vermeire S, Verstockt S, Voskuil MD, Winter HS, Young J; Belgium IBD Consortium; Cedars-Sinai IBD; International IBD Genetics Consortium; NIDDK IBD Genetics Consortium; NIHR IBD BioResource; Regeneron Genetics Center; SHARE Consortium; SPARC IBD Network; UK IBD Genetics Consortium, Duerr RH, Franke A, Brant SR, Cho J, Weersma RK, Parkes M, Xavier RJ, Rivas MA, Rioux JD, McGovern DPB, Huang H, Anderson CA, Daly MJ. Nat Genet. 2022 Sep.
Toward Better Understanding of Pediatric Feeding Disorder: A Proposed Framework for Patient Characterization. Sharp WG, Silverman A, Arvedson JC, Bandstra NF, Clawson E, Berry RC, McElhanon BO, Kozlowski AM, Katz M, Volkert VM, Goday PS, Lukens CT. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2022 Sep 1.
Multicenter Cohort Study of Infliximab Pharmacokinetics and Therapy Response in Pediatric Acute Severe Ulcerative Colitis. Whaley KG, Xiong Y, Karns R, Hyams JS, Kugathasan S, Boyle BM, Walters TD, Kelsen J, LeLeiko N, Shapiro J, Waddell A, Fox S, Bezold R, Bruns S, Widing R, Haberman Y, Collins MH, Mizuno T, Minar P, D'Haens GR, Denson LA, Vinks AA, Rosen MJ. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2022 Aug 27.
Fellow Entrustment for the Common Pediatric Subspecialty Entrustable Professional Activities Across Subspecialties. Pitts S, Schwartz A, Carraccio CL, Herman BE, Mahan JD, Sauer CG, Dammann CEL, Aye T, Myers
Angiotensin-converting Enzyme-2 (ACE2) Expression in Pediatric Liver Disease. Stevens JP, Kolachala VL, Joshi GN, Nagpal S, Gibson G, Gupta NA. Appl Immunohistochem Mol Morphol. 2022 Nov-Dec 01.
Toward Better Understanding of Pediatric Feeding Disorder: A Proposed Framework for Patient Characterization. Sharp WG, Silverman A, Arvedson JC, Bandstra NF, Clawson E, Berry RC, McElhanon BO, Kozlowski AM, Katz M, Volkert VM, Goday PS, Lukens CT. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2022 Sep 1.
Risk of variceal hemorrhage and pretransplant mortality in children with biliary atresia.
Bass LM, Ye W, Hawthorne K, Leung DH, Murray KF, Molleston JP, Romero R, Karpen S, Rosenthal P, Loomes KM, Wang KS, Squires RH, Miethke A, Ng VL, Horslen S, Kyle Jensen M, Sokol RJ, Magee JC, Shneider BL; ChiLDReN. Hepatology. 2022 Sep.
Post hoc, ergo propter hoc? Evaluating a Potential Increase in Childhood Severe Hepatitis in a Post-COVID World.
Gupta NA, Romero R. J Pediatric Infect Dis Soc. 2022 Aug 30.
Recent Insights into Pediatric Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis. Stevens JP, Gupta NA. Clin Liver Dis. 2022 Aug.
Natural History of Liver Disease in a Large International Cohort of Children with Alagille syndrome: Results from The GALA Study. Vandriel SM, Li LT, She H, Wang JS, Gilbert MA, Jankowska I, Czubkowski P, Gliwicz-Miedzińska D, Gonzales EM, Jacquemin E, Bouligand J, Spinner NB, Loomes KM, Piccoli DA, D'Antiga L, Nicastro E, Sokal É, Demaret T, Ebel NH, Feinstein JA, Fawaz R, Nastasio S, Lacaille F, Debray D, Arnell H, Fischler B, Siew S, Stormon M, Karpen SJ, Romero R, Kim KM, Baek WY, Hardikar W, Shankar S, Roberts AJ, Evans HM, Jensen MK, Kavan M, Sundaram SS, Chaidez A, Karthikeyan P, Sanchez MC, Cavalieri ML, Verkade HJ, Lee WS, Squires JE, Hajinicolaou C, Lertudomphonwanit C, Fischer RT, Larson-Nath C, Mozer-Glassberg Y, Arikan C, Lin HC, Quintero Bernabeu J, Alam S, Kelly D, Carvalho E, Ferreira CT, Indolfi G, Quiros-Tejeira RE, Bulut P, Calvo PL, Önal Z, Valentino PL, Desai DM, Eshun J, Rogalidou M, Dezsőfi A, Wiecek S, Nebbia G, Borges Pinto R, Wolters VM, Tamara ML, Zizzo AN, Garcia J, Schwarz K, Beretta M, Sandahl TD, Jimenez-Rivera C, Kerkar N, Brecelj J, Mujawar Q, Rock N, Busoms CM, Karnsakul W, Lurz E, Santos-Silva E, Blondet N, Bujanda L, Shah U, Thompson RJ, Hansen BE, Kamath BM; Global ALagille Alliance (GALA) Study Group. Hepatology. 2022 Aug 29.
Portal vein complications and outcomes following pediatric liver transplantation: Data from the Society of Pediatric Liver Transplantation.
Stevens JP, Xiang Y, Leong T, Naik K, Gupta NA. Liver Transpl. 2022 Jul.
Recent Insights into Pediatric Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis. Stevens JP, Gupta NA. Clin Liver Dis. 2022 Aug;26(3):489-519. Epub 2022 Jun 25.
Impact of Elevated Serum Triglycerides on Children with Acute Recurrent or Chronic Pancreatitis from INSPPIRE-2. Sellers ZM, Giefer MJ, Wang F, Cress GA, Abu-El-Haija MA, Chugh A, Cohen RZ, Downs EM, Fishman DS, Freeman AJ, Gariepy CE, Gonska TY, Grover AS, Lindblad D, Liu QY, Maqbool A, Mark JA, McFerron BA, Mehta MS, Morinville VD, Ng K, Noel RA, Ooi CY, Perito ER, Phadke MY, Ruan W, Schwarzenberg SJ, Troendle DM, Wilschanski M, Zheng Y, Yuan Y, Lowe ME, Uc A; Consortium for the Study of Chronic Pancreatitis, Diabetes and Pancreatic Cancer. J Pediatr. 2025 Jan.
Education and Psychosocial Factors Predict Odds of Death After Transfer to Adult health Care in Pediatric Liver Transplant Patients. Stevens JP, Gillespie S, Hall L, Tisheh J, Ford R, Gupta NA. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2022 Nov 1.
Portal vein complications and outcomes following pediatric liver transplantation: Data from the Society of Pediatric Liver Transplantation. Stevens JP, Xiang Y, Leong T, Naik K, Gupta NA. Liver Transpl. 2022 Jul.
Recognition and Outcomes of Pneumococcal Meningitis in 2 Tertiary Pediatric Hospitals Since the Introduction of the 13-Valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine. Stevens JP, Lively A, Jerris R, Yildirim I, Lantis P. Pediatr Emerg Care. 2022 Jan 1.
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