Stijn Meijnikman is a Gastroenterologist and Hepatologist in training and his research is focused on the interrelation between the gut and the liver in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD). NAFLD is estimated to affect approximately 25-30% of the world population and is now the leading cause of chronic liver disease globally. Despite progress in NAFLD research, effective treatment options to tackle this potentially debilitating disease are still lacking.

Stijn recently obtained causal evidence that the gut microbiota of individuals with NAFLD produces large amounts of ethanol that are clinically relevant for disease progression and outcome.

With the Niels Stensen Fellowship, Stijn will carry out research at the University of California San Diego to unravel ways to target high ethanol-producing bacteria and reduce ethanol production to lower additional risk for NAFLD.