The Norton Research Institute Clinical & Translational Research Laboratory will afford ample space and resources for scientists to conduct cutting-edge research, with the goal of producing more meaningful, applicable results directly benefiting patient care.

Story by: Nick Picht on August 16, 2024

Norton Research Institute will expand research efforts with the unveiling of the new Norton Research Institute Clinical & Translational Research Laboratory. The 7,200-square-foot facility, located inside Norton Healthcare Pavilion in downtown Louisville, will afford ample space and resources for scientists to conduct cutting-edge research, with the goal of producing more meaningful, applicable results directly benefiting patient care.

The first area of research moving into the space will investigate the connection between gut biology and the onset of several memory and movement disorders, including Parkinson’s disease as part of Norton Neuroscience Institute Cressman Parkinson’s Research. The group’s hypothesis is that changes in the gut’s biology can affect the progression of these cognitive diseases.

“We know how debilitating cognitive disorders like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases are for patients and their families,” said Steven T. Hester, M.D., MBA, senior vice president and chief clinical and strategy officer, Norton Healthcare. “By establishing this research laboratory, it shows Norton Research Institute’s commitment to expanding our efforts both at the bench and the bedside. In other words, we are looking at taking basic scientific knowledge and turning it into something that can directly benefit patients.”

Efforts in the new laboratory will be led by Shirish S. Barve, Ph.D., chief research scientist, Norton Neuroscience Institute and Norton Research Institute, who is known internationally for his research on the connection between the gut microbiome and brain. His work has receivedsustained federal funding from the National Institutes of Health.

Besides wet bench laboratories, lab support space and state-of-the-art equipment, the highlight of the new facility is an eight-freezer biorepository capable of sorting, storing and analyzing hundreds of thousands of bio specimen for use in research, investigating the gut-brain connection.

“We know the gut is constantly influenced by lifestyle issues, including lack of sleep, stress and diet,” Dr. Barve said. “We want to understand these changes and their connection to the neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration that can lead to neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases. We are hopeful this will lead to the development and implementation of evidence-based preventative and therapeutic strategies that will significantly and positively impact patient care.”

Funding for the lab and technology was made possible with a $4.2 million grant from the Norton Healthcare Foundation, with support from the estate of Elizabeth Pahk Cressman, M.D., Ph.D., respected anesthesiologist and philanthropist.

Over her lifetime, Dr. Cressman donated more than $28 million to Norton Healthcare in support of critical care and the neurosciences. Her gifts have created greater access to medical expertise, expanded innovative clinical translational research and helped recruit, train and attract best-in-class specialists.

“Because of this space, our specialists are going to be able to conduct groundbreaking research that is going to change lives,” said Lynnie Meyer, R.N., Ed.D., FAHP, CFRE, senior vice president and chief development officer, Norton Healthcare. “We’re grateful to Dr. Cressman’s vision and, with the community’s ongoing support, look forward to working to change the narrative around diseases that affect so many in our community.”

Norton Research Institute has roughly 750 research studies currently underway, investigating medications, devices, outcomes, disparities and biology in multiple medical specialties. In 2023, researchers participated in studies reported in 167 publications across pediatrics and adult research.