Lea Ann Chen, MD, AGAF, FACG is the Director of Inflammatory Bowel Disease Translational Research at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson School of Medicine in New Brunswick, NJ. She completed her medical degree at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, her internal medicine training at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, and her gastroenterology fellowship in the physician-scientist track at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

Clinically, Dr. Chen specializes in the care of patients with IBD, with a special interest in working with underserved populations. In addition, she is among the early group of physicians utilizing and studying the efficacy, safety, and ethics of fecal microbiota transplantation.

Dr. Chen’s research is focused on understanding longitudinal microbiome dynamics in the pathogenesis and behavior of IBD, as well as their correlating implications for IBD clinical care. Her research has been funded by the National Institute of Health, the American Gastroenterological Association, the American College of Gastroenterology, and multiple private and industry sponsors.