The Zhong Lab at the University of Kansas Medical Center investigates the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying gut-liver interactions in health and disease, with a particular focus on alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD). We are interested in how alcohol disrupts intestinal and hepatic homeostasis and how bidirectional communication between the gut and liver contributes to disease development and progression. A major research direction in the lab focuses on hepatic peroxisomes, particularly how alcohol-induced peroxisomal dysfunction affects hepatic metabolism and gut-liver communication.

Our laboratory combines genetically modified mouse models, intestinal organoids, cell culture systems, molecular and biochemical approaches, and multi-omics analyses to define mechanisms of gut-liver crosstalk and identify potential therapeutic targets.