The Rothenberg CURED Lab offers information about news coverage and happenings involving members of our lab, the division, division programs (Drug Allergy Program, Food Allergy Program, Transition and Adult Immunodeficiency Program) and the Cincinnati Center for Eosinophilic Disorders (CCED).
A vaccine that uses lipid nanoparticles to deliver allergen-specific messenger RNA (mRNA) showed early positive results at managing severe allergies in tests involving mice. “Our publication reports exciting findings that we hope will lead to clinical trials and has potential as a revolutionary approach for allergy interventions and treatment,” says Marc Rothenberg, MD, PhD, director of the Division of Allergy and Immunology at Cincinnati Children’s. Rothenberg and Nobel Laureate Drew Weissman, MD, PhD, director of the Penn Institute for RNA Innovation at the University of Pennsylvania, were co-senior authors on the study.
Read the Cincinnati Children’s blog
Watch the Local 12 News coverage
We are excited to announce that Rose Papiernik, CNP has joined our team! Rose is a certified nurse practitioner who many of you may know from the years that she served in the Cincinnati Center for Eosinophilic Disorders as a nurse working primarily with Dr. Mukkada. She now has moved into her provider role as a nurse practitioner and will be performing clinic visits for patients of the Cincinnati Center for Eosinophilic Disorders at our Green Township and Liberty locations. Rose’s familiarity with our patients and her commitment to care of patients with eosinophilic disease make her a trusted and compassionate addition to our provider team.
The Rothenberg CURED Lab has a long-term collaboration with Dr. Gurjit Hershey focused on understanding the progression and pathogenesis of allergic disease. In this study, using the longitudinal atopic dermatitis cohort, MPAACH, Drs. Hershey and Rothenberg and their colleagues demonstrate that eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) occurs in 1.5% of the children with atopic dermatitis, representing a ~10-fold enrichment. These findings supporting EoE being part of the “atopic march”. Read about this and other findings below.
Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) clinical trials often require patients to have disease involvement in multiple regions of the esophagus (e.g. distal and proximal biopsies showing EoE). By probing the Consortium of Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disease Researchers (CEGIR) database, we examined patient-reported outcome scores for patients who had multi-regional versus single-regional esophageal inflammation. Our study reveals that multi-regional eosinophilic inflammation does not impact symptom scores. These findings will shape enrollment in future clinical studies. It is important to note that for clinical care, examining biopsies from multiple sites in the esophagus regardless of the indication constitutes good clinical practice because it increases the chances of identifying abnormalities microscopically.
We are excited to announce that Dr. Richard Taylor III, MD has joined our team as an Assistant Professor! Dr. Taylor is a pediatric gastroenterologist with a strong connection to Cincinnati Children’s. He earned his medical degree from the University of Central Florida and completed his pediatric residency at Cincinnati Children’s, where he served as Chief Resident in 2021. He further completed his fellowship in pediatric gastroenterology at our institution, being mentored in clinical care and research by Drs. Bolton, Mukkada and Shoda. Dr. Taylor trained extensively within the Cincinnati Center for Eosinophilic Disorders and is skilled in transnasal endoscopy (TNE), which he will offer at our Liberty Campus. He has led our efforts to understand and describe our extensive and unique expertise in using dupilumab in eosinophilic gastrointestinal diseases, as well as completing an additional research project focused on eosinophilic colitis. He will also see patients at our Burnet Campus and Crestview Hills, Kentucky outpatient clinics and provide endoscopy services at our Burnet campus and soon to be opened Eastgate center. Dr. Taylor brings energy, expertise, and a deep commitment to patient-centered care.
The Rothenberg CURED Lab has published a paradigm-shifting article on the esophagus.
“This publication synthesizes two decades of research from my lab, which has led me to propose that the esophagus should be considered as an immunological organ. When I first learned about the esophagus in medical school, it was considered a simple conduit for transporting food from the mouth to the stomach. However, the synthesis of two decades of research from my laboratory and others now provides compelling evidence that the esophagus has a critical role in maintaining immune homeostasis, including immune tolerance to food. Perturbations in its immune function leads to a variety of diseases, most convincingly eosinophilic esophagus,” says Dr. Marc Rothenberg.
Read the Cincinnati Children’s Research Horizons blog
Read the Nature Reviews Gastroenterology and Hepatology article
Hear first-hand from a college student in the Rothenberg CURED Laboratory about his life with severe food allergies, life-threatening episodes of anaphylaxis and Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE). Learn more about what it is like to live with these ailments in Eddie Gerstner’s personal account of his journey from patient to researcher, recently presented at the 13th Biennial Congress of the International Eosinophil Society (IES) in France. The IES is a global community of scientists and clinicians united in advancing understanding and treatment of eosinophil-related diseases, leading to improved patient outcomes and enhanced quality of life. As President of the IES, Dr. Marc Rothenberg, presided over the five day meeting, which discussed the latest information about eosinophilic diseases with the 300 attendees from 25 countries.
Cincinnati Children’s and the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine have been chosen as a World Allergy Organization (WAO) Center of Excellence for the 2025-2029 term. Marc Rothenberg, MD, PhD, director of Cincinnati Children’s Division of Allergy and Immunology and the Cincinnati Center for Eosinophilic Disorders, and Jonathan Bernstein, MD, adjunct professor at the University of Cincinnati’s Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology, lead the Cincinnati Children's WAO Center of Excellence. “This is a great opportunity to expand on our already outstanding immunology community, especially in areas of training the next generation of leaders in the allergy/immunology field,” says Rothenberg. “Being designated as a WAO Center of Excellence is an endorsement of the Cincinnati Children’s, University of Cincinnati and affiliate sites’ commitment to excellence in basic, translational, and clinical research, patient care and education,” says Bernstein. “We are greatly honored by this commendation to our center, as it is recognition of the high standards maintained by our faculty and staff in advancing medical care of our specialty to the communities we serve.”
We are happy to celebrate the 18th annual National Eosinophil Awareness Week this week, May 18-24, 2025, to show support for people living with eosinophil-associated diseases.
Listen to a video message from Marc Rothenberg.
Are you just learning about eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) or newly diagnosed? Watch Callie's continuing journey as she learns about EoE too! Ventriloquist Emma grew up in a family living with EoE and made this video to help kids and their families who are learning about their diagnosis too.
Join us virtually May 18-24, 2025, for the Campaign Urging Research for Eosinophilic Diseases (CURED) National Eosinophil Awareness Week (NEAW) LIVE hosted by CURED and Cincinnati Children's.
Each day requires a separate registration, as each day has a different zoom link that will be sent you after registering!
Sunday: Welcome
6:30–8:30 PM ET
Register
Monday: Diagnosis
6:30–8:30 PM ET
Register
Tuesday: Treatment
6:30–8:30 PM ET
Register
Wednesday: Causal Factors in EGIDs
6:30–8:30 PM ET
Register
Thursday: Comorbidities
6:30–8:30 PM ET
Register
Friday: EGID in Adults
4:30–6:30 PM ET
Register
Are you just learning about eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) or newly diagnosed? Watch Callie's journey as she learns about EoE too! Ventriloquist Emma grew up in a family living with EoE and made this video to help kids and their families who are learning about their diagnosis too.
Thank you, Food Allergy Fund (FAF), for supporting research for allergic diseases. We would like to express our thanks for the FAF support of the allergen-mRNA project and advances in the food allergy field. The Rothenberg CURED Lab is continuing to make progress on the innovative use of allergen-mRNA for the prevention and treatment of allergies, including asthma, food allergy, and eosinophilic gastrointestinal diseases.
It is Rare Disease Day, in which we spread awareness of rare health conditions.
Thank you, Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE), for bringing greater awareness to rare diseases like eosinophilic gastrointestinal disorders in this video!
Beyond the Bite: EoE and Food Allergy
Thank you, Campaign Urging Research for Eosinophilic Diseases (CURED), for the generous support (>$7.25 million) of research for eosinophilic diseases, which has greatly increased our understanding and improved outcomes for rare diseases such as eosinophilic gastritis, eosinophilic enteritis, and eosinophilic colitis. The Rothenberg lab proudly bears the name “Rothenberg CURED Laboratory” to acknowledge CURED’s essential role.
"As we roll into the New Year, I am pleased to share this video of the amazing accomplishments of the Division of Allergy and Immunology at Cincinnati Children’s over the last year. Wishing everyone a happy new year and expectations that we will continue to move science and patient care ahead in a truly impactful and meaningful manner." ~ Marc Rothenberg, MD, PhD.
Marc E. Rothenberg, MD, PhD9/6/2024
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