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Abstract or Project Description

For a take home book program for 218 classrooms and over 4,000 children and families. Funding will also support early literacy trainings and resources for teachers, community based organizations and families.

Abstract or Project Description

ALS United Greater New York builds hope and enhances the quality of life while supporting aggressive research to find new treatments and a cure by providing assistance for people with ALS through a robust care services program, coordinating multidisciplinary care through certified clinical care centers, leading the way in global research and fostering government partnerships.

Abstract or Project Description

Charlotte Maxwell Clinic is a 30-year-old nonprofit providing complementary, integrative therapies to low-income and underserved women with cancer.

Abstract or Project Description

A new dance theater work that explores the intersection of social movements and the protest music, dance, and poetry that moved across the Americas and found a particular voice in San Francisco’s Mission District.

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Abstract or Project Description

The Tanzania School Foundation Inc. is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing educational opportunities for children in Tanzania. Through various programs and initiatives, the foundation works to improve access to quality education, infrastructure and resources in underserved communities, aiming to empower students and create brighter futures for them and their communities.

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The Trust for Public Land conserves and creates parks and open spaces across the United States to enhance community well-being and promote environmental conservation.

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The Lindenauer Center for Corporate Governance is a research institution at Dartmouth College dedicated to exploring and enhancing corporate governance practices in the business world.

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The Last Mile (TLM) offers education and technology training to justice-impacted individuals, preparing them for employment in modern job roles and disrupting the cycle of mass incarceration. With in-classroom curricula and transitional support, TLM fosters personal and professional development, creating pathways to meaningful employment for its students.

Abstract or Project Description

A play by Katori Hall and directed by Nataki Garrett. This play brings to life a complex family drama that shares the heartbreaking story of displacement, gentrification, and the price we pay.

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Support for the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive for the David Wilson Program, “The Possible (working title).”

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Abstract or Project Description

Abstract or Project Description

The study was an early phase clinical trial of Fecal Microbiota Transplant (FMT), delivered via different routes (colonoscopy and enema or oral capsules) for mild to moerate ulcerative colitis. Additionally, they investigated if pre-treatment with antibiotics prior to FMT has an impact on the outcome. 30 subjects were enrolled in the clinical trial. 20 subjects finished the study reaching at least the primary endpoint. Results indicate that pre-treatment with an antibiotic cocktail, followed by FMT delivered via colonoscopy, followed by maintenance dosing with orally administered encapsulated FMT can provie a greater benefit as compared with the study arms without antibiotics and with enema as the delivery mode during the maintenance phase.

Abstract or Project Description

Abstract or Project Description

Environmental factors are thought to contribute to the development of a range of human diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Interestingly, the incidence of IBD is higher in patients with autism, compared to those without. We propose that inflammation to which a developing embryo may be exposed in the maternal womb, could be an environmental risk factor linking autism and IBD.

We previously showed that a particular type of immune cells, Th17 cells, in mothers, promotes autism-like phenotypes in offspring, using a mouse model of inflammation-induced neurodevelopmental disorders (i.e. autism). Th17 cells, and the pathways that control them, are also implicated in IBD. We propose that prenatal, maternal inflammation, through Th17 cells both enhances autistic phenotypes and increases IBD susceptibility in offspring. Our work thus aims to elucidate the intricate connection between maternal inflammation, autism and IBD. In addition, this research will lay the foundation for future studies to identify novel therapeutics for treating maternal inflammation- induced IBD.

Abstract or Project Description

Abstract or Project Description

Adherent-invasive Escherichia coli (AIEC), a pathogenic form of E. coli, is known to accumulate in the intestinal mucosa of patients with Crohn’s disease (CD). Although it is believed that AIEC exacerbates the disease by promoting intestinal inflammation, the precise mechanism underlying the abnormal expansion of AIEC in the intestinal mucosa remains largely unknown. We have found that AIEC prefers amino acids as a source of nutrients during inflammation and this nutritional preference is critical for its ability to gain a competitive edge over commensal non-pathogenic E. coli. Importantly, we have demonstrated that intestinal amino acids used by AIEC as nutrients are mainly derived from the diet and, therefore, the removal of certain key amino acids from the diet will prevent AIEC from thriving in the gut. In this study, we will aim [1] to clarify the role of dietary amino acid utilization by AIEC in the development of intestinal inflammation and [2] to unravel the mechanisms by which intestinal inflammation regulates the substrate preference of AIEC. A successful completion of this project is expected to result in the development of novel therapeutic strategies that will control the pathogen by restricting the availability of its preferred source of nutrients.

Abstract or Project Description

Many genetic factors have been associated with increased IBD susceptibility. However, these only explain a fraction of the disease risk that an individual with such a predisposition experiences. Environmental factors have been proposed to work in combination with host genetics to cause IBD. Diet and the normally beneficial community of bacteria that live in the human intestine are candidate “environmental” factors. The industrialized world, in which IBD is more prevalent, has experienced reduced consumption of dietary fiber–a term used to represent a group of complex carbohydrates abundant in vegetables and grains. Humans cannot directly digest fiber, so it transits to the distal intestine and is digested by gut bacteria. We have shown that a lack of dietary fiber causes gut bacteria to turn to a different source of carbohydrates to survive: protective intestinal mucus, which normally forms a barrier that keeps bacteria at a “safe distance” from host tissue. We propose that chronic or transient reductions in fiber trigger gut bacteria to erode the mucus layer, bringing them into proximity with the host and causing disease flares. Support for our model will allow us to explore dietary therapies to prevent IBD occurrence by reinforcing the integrity of the mucus layer.