Research

Human milk is at the center of our neonatal nutrition research, including the Human Milk Degradome: how milk lipids break down into fatty acids, and what that may mean for the preterm gut. Our NICU is partnered with the Mother’s Milk Bank of South Carolina, which provides donor milk to premature infants.

Current trainee project

Carli Hilger, D.O. Correlating choline levels in human milk, serum, and maternal diets.

Fat is a major source of energy in human milk. As milk is expressed, stored, handled and digested, its fats are broken down into smaller pieces, such as fatty acids. This project looks closely at that breakdown, called lipid degradation, and asks how it may relate to intestinal health in premature infants.

Katie Chetta, MD, has received a K23 career development award from the National Institutes of Health for her project, Lipid Degradation and Preterm Intestinal Outcomes.

Read the K23 announcement →

We investigate neonatal gastrointestinal diseases, including necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), through nutritional, microbial and neonatal research that supports the health outcomes of critically ill babies.

Preterm babies are born with immature intestines, and intestinal problems such as necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) remain a serious concern in neonatal intensive care.

Related publications

Hegedus C, et al. A standardized universal protocol for using adjunct abdominal ultrasound at the time of diagnosis for suspected necrotizing enterocolitis. Pediatr Radiol. 2025;55(13):2823–2831.

Essex C, et al. Maternal, neonatal, and nutritional risk factors for medical and surgical necrotizing enterocolitis. J Perinatol. 2024;44(12):1762–1767.

Our new study in npj Science of Food, led by first author Aly Gutierrez with senior author Mindy Engevik, PhD, found that six species of helpful gut bacteria respond to human milk and infant formula in their own distinct ways, with human milk prompting more potentially beneficial compounds.

Read the plain-language summary →

The Mother’s Milk Bank of South Carolina is partnered with our NICU. There we see firsthand how access to healthcare resources impacts children’s health, from providing donor milk to premature infants to supporting families in need.

Related research

Camilon TJM, et al. Donor human milk storage and gastrointestinal morbidities in preterm infants: a case-control study. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr. 2025;49(6):717–723.

Current trainee project: MikaelAnn Worsham, D.O. Donor human milk and neurodevelopmental outcomes.

Visit the milk bank →

We host the 8th site for the NIH-funded NEC Biorepository. Our biobank provides a diverse range of biological samples such as blood, urine, stool and breast milk, ensuring researchers have access to high-quality resources for their studies.

Funded in part by the NEC Society and the David and Laura Stone Foundation for Neonatal Research.

About our biobank → · NEC Society Biorepository →

Our work includes NICU quality improvement projects that make a difference.

In the news · MUSC · Aug. 3, 2022

New partnership connects mothers of preterm babies with breast pumps, nutritional resources

A quality improvement team spearheaded by neonatology-perinatal medicine fellow Neal Boone, M.D., and mentor Katie Chetta, M.D., partnered with SC DHEC’s WIC program to park the WIC Service on Wheels van at MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital once a week, so mothers of babies in the NICU or CVICU can sign up for WIC and receive a personal hospital-grade electric breast pump immediately after discharge.

Related publication

Boone N, et al. Multi-prong quality improvement approach for increasing mother’s own milk use for very low birth weight infants. J Perinatol. 2024;44(5):671–679.