Thomas Ma

Thomas Ma is a Professor in the Department of Medicine and the Department of Molecular and Precision Medicine, affiliated with the One Health Microbiome Center. His work focuses on intestinal epithelial tight junction (TJ) barrier dysfunction in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), Crohn’s disease, necrotizing enterocolitis, and alcoholic hepatitis. He has over 113 research outputs and 4 active grants.

• Education: MD from The Medical College of Virginia, PhD in Medicinal Chemistry from Virginia Commonwealth University, and BS in Biology from Fordham University.

His research interests center on TJ barrier regulation in health and disease, probiotic modulation of intestinal inflammation, and therapeutic development for IBD. His lab employs in vitro and in vivo models to study molecular mechanisms.

Recent articles highlight probiotic bacteria (Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus) targeting TJ permeability through Toll-like receptors, PI3K/NF-κB inhibition, and genome sequencing of probiotic strains. Two 2023 studies explore AhR/Nrf2 pathways in claudin modulation and cytokine regulation.

• Scientific Awards: Career Citation Milestone Award (2020), Eminent Scientist of the Year (2002), Gold-Headed Cane Award (2015), and two NIH National Research Service Awards.