How colon cells and nerves create the rhythmic waves that move stool
Defining and modeling the cellular interactions for rhythmic colon motility
This work looks at how nerve cells and pacemaker cells in the colon create regular waves that push stool along, aiming to help people with bowel movement problems.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Mayo Clinic Rochester NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Rochester, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11126867 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers will record electrical activity from the different cell types that control colon muscle and use those data to build computer models that reproduce the regular motor rhythms. They will study both the local ‘ripple’ waves and the longer migrating motor complexes that move contents along the colon. The team will combine lab tissue or cell preparations with simulations to see how interactions between interstitial cells of Cajal, enteric neurons, and smooth muscle generate rhythms. The goal is to explain how rhythmic motor patterns start in the proximal colon even when there is no stool present.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People with chronic constipation or other suspected colon-motility disorders, or patients undergoing colon procedures who can donate tissue for research, would be most relevant to this work.
Not a fit: Patients whose problems are due to active inflammatory bowel disease, infection, or non-motility causes of abdominal pain are less likely to see direct benefit from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could point to new ways to treat constipation and other colon motility disorders by targeting the cellular circuits that set the rhythm.
How similar studies have performed: Prior studies have identified the main cell types and some local motor patterns, but combining detailed cellular recordings with whole-colon modeling to explain the regular rhythm is a newer, integrated approach.
Where this research is happening
Rochester, United States
- Mayo Clinic Rochester — Rochester, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Smith-Edwards, Kristen Michelle — Mayo Clinic Rochester
- Study coordinator: Smith-Edwards, Kristen Michelle
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.