Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis

Department of Pediatrics, Division of Newborn Medicine, St. Louis Children’s Hospital

https://pediatrics.wustl.edu/faculty/Good_M

Research Interests

Dr. Good’s laboratory focuses on the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in the development of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). Specifically, she is interested in the anti-inflammatory properties of breast milk and amniotic fluid on the neonatal intestinal epithelium in the pathogenesis of NEC. Utilizing a mouse model of NEC, she studies the mechanism by which breast milk and amniotic fluid prevent the disease. She has shown that amniotic fluid inhibits Toll-like receptor (TLR4)-mediated pro-inflammatory signaling in the fetal and neonatal intestine and prevents NEC via epidermal growth factor receptor signaling (PNAS, 2012). She has also developed a large animal model of NEC with premature piglets and has begun testing therapeutics in this model (AJP-GI and Liver, 2014). She is also particularly interested in understanding the anti-inflammatory properties of breast milk on the intestine and seeks to determine the mechanism that mediates the protection. She has shown that two ingredients found in breast milk, epidermal growth factor (Mucosal Immunology, 2015) and human milk oligosaccharide (British Journal of Nutrition, 2016) mediated protection against experimental NEC by inhibiting intestinal inflammation. By identifying the components of breast milk that are anti-inflammatory, she hopes to identify novel protective and treatment strategies for necrotizing enterocolitis. In addition to her basic science investigation, Dr. Good is the primary investigator on an IRB protocol entitled, “Identifying Premature Infants who are at High Risk for NEC.” The aim of this study is to evaluate the molecular signature and genetic susceptibility of premature infants with and without NEC. The long term goal of this study is to be able to intervene earlier in the disease process and prevent the development of this devastating disease altogether.

Current Projects

Our lab focuses on the intestinal mucosal immune response involved in the pathogenesis of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). Specifically, we are interested in:

– Determining the components of breast milk that are protective against NEC.

– Understanding the signaling pathways that are involved in NEC development.

– Predicting the infants at risk for NEC.

Recent Publications

1. Good M, Sodhi CP, Egan CE, Afrazi A, Jia H, Yamaguchi Y, Lu P, Branca MF, Ma C, Prindle T Jr, Mielo S, Pompa A, Hodzic Z, Ozolek JA, Hackam DJ. Breast milk protects against the development of necrotizing enterocolitis through inhibition of Toll-like receptor 4 in the intestinal epithelium via activation of the epidermal growth factor receptor. Mucosal Immunol. 2015 Sep;8(5):1166-79. PMID: 25899687. PMCID: PMC4540669.

2. Raveh-Sadka T, Thomas B, Singh A, Firek B, Brooks B, Castelle CJ, Sharon I, Baker R, Good M, Morowitz MJ, Banfield JF. Gut bacteria are rarely shared by co-hospitalized premature infants, regardless of necrotizing enterocolitis development. eLife 2015;4:e05477. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.05477. PMID: 25735037. PMCID: PMC4384745.

3. Egan CE, Sodhi CP, Good M, Lin J, Jia H, Yamaguchi Y, Lu P, Ma C, Branca MF, Weyandt S, Fulton WB, Niño DF, Prindle T Jr, Ozolek JA, Hackam DJ. Toll-like receptor 4 mediated lymphocyte influx induces neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis. J Clin Invest. 2015 Dec 21. pii: 83356. doi: 10.1172/JCI83356. PMID: 26690704. PMCID: PMC4731173.

4. Jia H, Sodhi CP, Yamaguchi Y, Lu P, Martin LY, Good M, Zhou Q, Sung J, Fulton WB, Nino DF, Prindle T Jr, Ozolek JA, Hackam DJ. Pulmonary Epithelial TLR4 Activation Leads to Lung Injury in Neonatal Necrotizing Enterocolitis. J Immunol. 2016 Aug 1;197(3):859-71. PMID: 27307558. PMCID: PMC4955761.

5. Niño DF, Sodhi CP, Egan CE, Zhou Q, Lin J, Lu P, Yamaguchi Y, Jia H, Martin LY, Good M, Fulton WB, Prindle T Jr, Ozolek JA, Hackam DJ. Retinoic Acid Improves Incidence and Severity of Necrotizing Enterocolitis by Lymphocyte Balance Restitution and Repopulation of LGR5+ Intestinal Stem Cells. Shock. 2016 Aug 2. [Epub ahead of print]. PMID: 27488085.

6. Good M, Sodhi CP, Yamaguchi Y, Jia H, Lu P, Fulton WB, Martin LY, Prindle T, Nino DF, Zhou Q, Ma C, Ozolek JA, Buck RH, Goehring KC, and Hackam DJ. The human milk oligosaccharide 2-fucosyllactose attenuates the severity of experimental necrotizing enterocolitis by enhancing mesenteric perfusion in the neonatal intestine. Br J Nutr. 2016 Oct;116(7):1175-1187. Epub 2016 Sep 9. PMID: 27609061.