Penn Postdocs in the News: Megan Liou, Ph.D., awarded Hartwell Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship
Penn Postdoctoral Fellow Megan Liou receives Hartwell Foundation Fellowship to study stress, the gut, and children’s health
PHILADELPHIA, PA — Megan Liou, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Microbiology at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine, has been selected for a Hartwell Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship. Under the mentorship of Christoph A. Thaiss, Ph.D., Dr. Liou will investigate how psychological stress affects intestinal physiology and immunity in children.
Dr. Liou’s Hartwell-supported research examines how the enteric nervous system mediates stress-induced changes in the intestine. Psychological stress is known to exacerbate pediatric inflammatory bowel disease and increase susceptibility to enteric infection, but the biological mechanisms connecting stress to these outcomes remain incompletely understood. Her work seeks to elucidate how nervous-system signaling contributes to changes in intestinal physiology and immune function.
Dr. Liou joined Penn in June 2022 after completing her Ph.D. at the University of California, Davis, where her doctoral research in the laboratory of Andreas Bäumler examined gut biogeographical niches and the relationships between enteric pathogens and commensal microbes. She previously earned a bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry from UCLA and conducted research at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
Penn nominated Dr. Liou alongside Molly Reilly, Ph.D., for Hartwell Fellowship support. The two-year fellowship provides early-career scientists with dedicated support to pursue biomedical research with the potential to improve children’s health.
We are proud to celebrate Dr. Liou and her research exploring the connections among stress, the nervous system, intestinal health, and immunity.