Dr. Steven McElroy

Dr. Steven McElroy is a Neonatologist and Physician-Scientist at UC Davis Children’s Hospital.

His work is focused on the mechanisms of gastrointestinal epithelial cell injury and repair during development, especially as it relates to neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), where medical treatments and mortality have been essentially unchanged since its discovery in the 1960s. His long-term goal is to better understand how different gastrointestinal developmental stages differ in their response to inflammation, and specifically the mechanism by which immaturity of the small intestine predisposes the development of NEC.

His recent research includes actively examining the effects of inflammation on intestinal homeostasis and repair mechanisms at different stages of intestinal development as well as examining the role of Paneth cells in the development of NEC.

Recent Publications

1. Stanford AH, Gong H, Noonan M, Lewis AN, Gong Q, Lanik WE, Hsieh JJ, Lueschow SR, Frey MR, Good M, McElroy SJ. "A direct comparison of mouse and human intestinal development using epithelial gene expression patterns." Pediatr Res. 2020 Jul;88(1):66-76. doi: 10.1038/s41390-019-0472-y. Epub 2019 Jun 26. Read More
2. Berger JN, Gong H, Good M, McElroy SJ. "Dithizone-induced Paneth cell disruption significantly decreases intestinal perfusion in the murine small intestine." J Pediatr Surg. 2019 Nov;54(11):2402-2407. doi: 10.1016/j.jpedsurg.2019.02.021. Epub 2019 Feb 23. PubMed PMID: 30857731; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6707906. Read More
3. Caplan MS, Underwood MA, Modi N, Patel R, Gordon PV, Sylvester KG, McElroy S, Manzoni P, Gephart S, Chwals WJ, Turner MA, Davis JM. "Necrotizing Enterocolitis: Using Regulatory Science and Drug Development to Improve Outcomes." J Pediatr. 2019 Sep;212:208-215.e1. doi: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2019.05.032. Epub 2019 Jun 22. PubMed PMID: 31235383. Read More
4. Fricke EM, Elgin TG, Gong H, Reese J, Gibson-Corley KN, Weiss RM, Zimmerman K, Bowdler NC, Kalantera KM, Mills DA, Underwood MA, McElroy SJ. "Lipopolysaccharide-induced maternal inflammation induces direct placental injury without alteration in placental blood flow and induces a secondary fetal intestinal injury that persists into adulthood." Am J Reprod Immunol. 2018 May;79(5):e12816. doi: 10.1111/aji.12816. Epub 2018 Jan 25. PubMed PMID: 29369434; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5908742. Read More
5. Ares GJ, McElroy SJ, Hunter CJ. "The science and necessity of using animal models in the study of necrotizing enterocolitis." Semin Pediatr Surg.2018 Feb;27(1):29-33. doi: 10.1053/j.sempedsurg.2017.11.006. Epub 2017 Nov 6. Review. PubMed PMID: 29275813; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5745061. Read More
6. Fawley J, Cuna A, Menden HL, McElroy S, Umar S, Welak SR, Gourlay DM, Li X, Sampath V. "Single-Immunoglobulin Interleukin-1-Related Receptor regulates vulnerability to TLR4-mediated necrotizing enterocolitis in a mouse model." Pediatr Res. 2018 Jan;83(1-1):164-174. doi: 10.1038/pr.2017.211. Epub 2017 Oct 4. PubMed PMID: 28846670. Read More
7. Noonan M, Turek JW, Dagle JM, McElroy SJ. "Intraoperative High-Frequency Jet Ventilation Is Equivalent to Conventional Ventilation During Patent Ductus Arteriosus Ligation." World J Pediatr Congenit Heart Surg. 2017 Sep;8(5):570-574. doi: 10.1177/2150135117717974. PubMed PMID: 28901229. Read More
8. White JR, Gong H, Pope B, Schlievert P, McElroy SJ. "Paneth-cell-disruption-induced necrotizing enterocolitis in mice requires live bacteria and occurs independently of TLR4 signaling." Dis Model Mech. 2017 Jun 1;10(6):727-736. doi: 10.1242/dmm.028589. Epub 2017 Apr 27. PubMed PMID: 28450472; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5483007. Read More
9. Wynn JL, Wilson CS, Hawiger J, Scumpia PO, Marshall AF, Liu JH, Zharkikh I, Wong HR, Lahni P, Benjamin JT, Plosa EJ, Weitkamp JH, Sherwood ER, Moldawer LL, Ungaro R, Baker HV, Lopez MC, McElroy SJ, Colliou N, Mohamadzadeh M, Moore DJ. "Targeting IL-17A attenuates neonatal sepsis mortality induced by IL-18." Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2016 May 10;113(19):E2627-35. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1515793113. Epub 2016 Apr 25. PubMed PMID: 27114524; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4868456. Read More
10. Elgin TG, Kern SL, McElroy SJ. "Development of the Neonatal Intestinal Microbiome and Its Association With Necrotizing Enterocolitis." Clin Ther.2016 Apr;38(4):706-15. doi: 10.1016/j.clinthera.2016.01.005. Epub 2016 Feb 3. Review. PubMed PMID: 26852144. Read More