McClain to Give Keller Lecture, Oct. 14
Craig J. McClain, M.D., will deliver the 2014 Mark Keller Honorary Lecture on Tuesday, Oct. 14 at 1:30 p.m. in Masur Auditorium, Bldg. 10. The title of his talk is “Nutrition, Gut Barrier Function, and Liver Disease.” Dr. McClain is an internationally distinguished clinician and scientist in the fields of gastroenterology, alcohol abuse, nutrition, cytokine research and hepatic drug metabolism.
Dr. McClain is professor of medicine and professor of pharmacology and toxicology at the University of Louisville, where he also holds several research and administrative leadership positions. He has made many contributions to the alcohol research field. In an early study, he described the deleterious interactions in the liver between alcohol and acetaminophen. In another landmark study, he described dysregulated cytokines in alcoholic hepatitis. Over time, Dr. McClain’s work has increasingly focused on translational and interventional studies, including a seminal clinical study demonstrating the beneficial effects of nutritional supplementation in alcoholic hepatitis patients.
The current focus of research in Dr. McClain’s laboratory is on the gut-liver axis, especially as it relates to alcoholic liver disease generally and on the role nutrition plays in alcoholic liver disease. He has received continuous federal funding, including grants from NIH and the Department of Defense, for almost 40 years.
NIAAA established this honorary lecture series as a tribute to Mark Keller, a pioneer in alcohol research. Honorees have made significant contributions to our understanding of alcohol’s effects and how we can prevent and treat alcohol problems.