Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine

Email: bercikp@mcmaster.ca

Year of appointment: 2008

Research Areas

• Functional gastrointestinal diseases
• Gastrointestinal motility
• Visceral sensitivity
• Gut-brain axis

Focus

• The role of low-grade inflammation in the pathophysiology of gut dysfunction
• The effect of gut inflammation on CNS function and gut-brain axis
• The role of microbiota in functional GI diseases
• Development of new techniques to study gastrointestinal motility, including videofluoroscopy image analysis and magnet-tracking
• The role of antro-pyloro-duodenal coordination in gastroparesis

Funding

• CIHR Grant "Intestinal Microbiota and Gut-Brain Axis". Principle investigators: SM Collins and P Bercik. 2009-2014
• AFMNet Grant: Determination of the efficacy and substantiation of health claims associated with prebiotics and their use in human nutrition; impacts on human physiology, well-being and gastro-intestinal communities. Co-investigator. Principle investigators: M Kalmokoff. 2009-2013 Crohn’s Colitis Foundation of Canada: "Intestinal Microbiota and the Increased Sensitivity to Colitis in Depression". Principle investigator. 2009-2012
• Industry sponsored grant: "Effect of N3001 on anxiety and depression in patients with diarrhea-predominant IBS: a pilot study". Principle investigator. Sponsor: Nestec Ltd, Switzerland. 2009-2011
• McMaster University Department of Medicine Internal Career Award. 2008-2011
• AFP Internal Career Research Award, Department of Medicine, McMaster University. 2008-2011
• Industry sponsored grant: "Mechanisms of action of N3001 on the gut-brain axis". Co-investigator. Sponsor: Nestec Ltd, Switzerland. 2008-2010
• Evaluation of effects of probiotics on gut and brain. Co-investigator, PI: SM Collins. Sponsor: Nestle Research Institute 2008-2009
• Effect of probiotics on anxiety and depression in patients with diarrhea-predominant IBS. Principal Investigator. Nestle Research Institute. 2008-2009
• Hamilton Health Sciences Young Investigator Research Award. 2005

Selected Publications

• Bercik P, Verdu EF, Foster JA, Macri J, Potter M, Huang X, Malinowski P, Jackson W, Blennerhassett P, Neufeld KA, Lu J, Khan W, Corthesy-Theulaz I, Cherbut C, Bergonzelli GE, Collins SM. Chronic gastrointestinal inflammation induces anxiety-like behavior and alters central nervous system biochemistry. Gastroenterology 2010 Jul 2. PDF
• Xenodemetropoulos T, Khan KJ, Bercik, P. Spontaneous intramural esophageal hematoma in association with idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura: a cause of non-cardiac chest pain. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol 2010 Mar 3. PDF
• Slack E, Hapfelmeier S, Stecher B, Velykoredko Y, Stoel M, Lawson MAE, Geuking MB, Beutler B, Tedder TF, Hardt WD, Bercik P, Verdu EF, McCoy KD, Macpherson AJ. Innate and adaptive immunity cooperate to maintain host-microbiota mutualism. Science 2009; 325 (5940): 617-20. PDF
• Collins SM, Bercik P. The relationship between intestinal microbiota and the central nervous system in normal gastrointestinal function and disease. Gastroenterology 2009; 136(6): 2003-14. PDF
• Bercik P, Verdu EF, Foster JA, Lu J, Scharringa A, Kean I, Wang L, Blennerhassett P, Collins SM. Role of gut-brain axis in persistent abnormal feeding behavior in mice following eradication of Helicobacter pylori infection. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2009; 296(3): 587-94. PDF
• Verdu EF, Bercik P, Huang XX, Lu J, Al-Mutawaly N, Sakai H, Tompkins TA, Croitoru K, Tsuchida E, Perdue M, Collins SM. The role of luminal factors in the recovery of gastric function and behavioral changes after chronic Helicobacter pylori infection. Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol 2008; 295(4): 664-70. PDF
• Mauro M, Radovic V, Wolfe M, Kamath M, Bercik P, Armstrong D. 13C urea breath test for (Helicobacter pylori): evaluation of 10-minute breath collection. Can J Gastroenterol 2006; 20(12): 775-8. PDF
• Mauro M, Radovic V, Zhou P, Wolfe M, Kamath M, Bercik P, Croitoru K, Armstrong D. 13C urea breath test for (Helicobacter pylori): determination of the optimal cut-off point in a Canadian community population. Can J Gastroenterol 2006; 20(12): 770-4. PDF
• Verma-Gandhu M, Verdu EF, Bercik P, Blennerhassett PA, Al-Mutawaly N, Ghia JE, Collins SM. Visceral pain perception is determined by the duration of colitis and associated neuropeptide expression in the mouse. Gut 2007; 56(3): 358-64. PDF
• Varghese AK, Verdu EF, Bercik P, Khan WI, Blennerhassett PA, Szechtman H, Collins SM. Antidepressants attenuate increased susceptibility to colitis in a murine model of depression. Gastroenterology 2006; 130(6): 1743-53. PDF
• Verma-Gandhu M, Bercik P, Motomura Y, Verdu EF, Khan WI, Blennerhassett PA, Wang L, El-Sharkawy RT, Collins SM. CD4+ T-cell modulation of visceral nociception in mice. Gastroenterology 2005; 130(6): 1721-8. PDF
• Verdu EF, Bercik P, Verma-Gandhu M, Huang XX, Blennerhassett P, Jackson W, Mao Y, Wang L, Rochat F, Collins SM. Specific probiotic therapy attenuates antibiotic induced visceral hypersensitivity in mice. Gut 2006; 55(2): 182-90. PDF
• Bercik P, Schlageter V, Mauro M, Rawlinson J, Kucera P, Armstrong D. Noninvasive verification of nasogastric tube placement using a magnet-tracking system: a pilot study in healthy subjects. JPEN 2005; 29(4): 305-10. PDF
• Bercik P, Verdu EF, Collins SM. Is irritable bowel syndrome a low-grade inflammatory bowel disease? Gastroenterol Clin North Am 2005; 34(2): 235-45. PDF
• Wang XY, Lammers WJ, Bercik P, Huizinga JD. Lack of pyloric interstitial cells of Cajal explains distinct peristaltic motor patterns in stomach and small intestine. Am J Physiol GAstrointest Liver Physiol 2005; 289(3): 539-49. PDF
• Vallance BA, Gunawan MI, Hewlett B, Bercik P, Van Kampen C, Galeazzi F, Sime PJ, Gauldie J, Collins SM. TGF-beta1 gene transfer to the mouse colon leads to intestinal fibrosis. Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol 2005; 289(1): 116-28. PDF
• Verdu EF, Bercik P, Bergonzelli GE, Huang XX, Blennerhasset P, Rochat F, Fiaux M, Mansourian R, Corthésy-Theulaz I, Collins SM. Lactobacillus paracasei normalizes muscle hypercontractility in a murine model of postinfective gut dysfunction. Gastroenterology 2004; 127(3): 826-37. PDF
• Bercik P, Wang L, Verdu EF, Mao YK, Blennerhassett P, Khan WI, Kean I, Tougas G, Collins SM. Visceral hyperalgesia and intestinal dysmotility in a mouse model of postinfective gut dysfunction. Gastroenterology 2004; 127(1): 179-87. PDF
• Sanchez AL, Langdon CM, Akhtar M, Lu J, Richards CD, Bercik P, McKay DM. Adenoviral transfer of the murine oncostatin M gene suppresses dextran-sodium sulfate-induced colitis. J Interferon Cytokine Res 2003; 23(4): 193-201. PDF
• Bercik P, De Giorgio R, Blennerhassett P, Verdu EF, Barbara G, Collins SM. Immune-mediated neural dysfunction in a murine model of chronic Helicobacter pylori infection. Gastroenterology 2002; 123(4): 1205-15. PDF
• Verdu EF, Deng Y, Bercik P, Collins SM. Modulatory effects of estrogen in two murine models of experimental colitis. Am J Phsyiol GAstrointest Liver Physiol 2002; 283(1): 27-36. PDF
• Wang XY, Berezin I, Mikkelsen HB, Der T, Bercik P, Collins SM, Huizinga JD. Pathology of interstitial cells of Cajal in relation to inflammation revealed by ultrastructure but not immunohistochemistry. Am J Pathol 2002; 160(4): 1529-40. PDF
• Huizinga JD, Berezin I, Sircar K, Hewlett B, Donnelly G, Bercik P, Ross C, Algoufi T, Fitzgerald P, Der T, Riddell RH, Collins SM, Jacobson K. Development of interstitial cells of Cajal in a full-term infant without an enteric nervous system. Gastroenterology 2001; 120(2): 561-7. PDF
• Der T, Bercik P, Donnelly G, Jackson T, Berezin I, Collins SM, Huizinga JD. Interstitial cells of cajal and inflammation-induced motor dysfunction in the mouse small intestine. Gastroenterology 2000; 119(6): 1590-9. PDF
• Bercik P, Verdu EF, Armstrong D, Idström JP, Cederberg C, Markert M, Crabtree JE, Stolte M, Blum AL. The effect of ammonia on omeprazole-induced reduction of gastric acidity in subjects with Helicobacter pylori infection. Am J Gastroenterol 2000; 95(4): 947-55. PDF
• Verdu EF, Bercik P, Cukrowska B, Farre-Castany MA, Bouzourene H, Saraga E, Blum AL, Corthésy-Theulaz I, Tlaskalova-Hogenova H, Michetti P. Oral administration of antigens from intestinal flora anaerobic bacteria reduces the severity of experimental acute colitis in BALB/c mice. Clin Exp Immunol 2000; 120(1): 46-50. PDF

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