Dr. Christina Kratschmer joined the Department of Medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology as an Instructor as of July 2024. She received her medical degree from Albert Einstein College of Medicine. There, she was enrolled in the Medical Scientist Training Program and completed her PhD in the laboratory of Dr. Matthew Levy. Her thesis, Towards Effective, Stable Aptamer Drug Conjugates for the Treatment of Solid Tumors examined how different chemical modifications influenced the efficacy of RNA oligonucleotides for the treatment of pancreatic, prostate, and other cancers. She then completed her internal medicine residency and gastroenterology fellowship at Washington University School of Medicine. Dr. Kratschmer has always been passionate about engineering and technology development. During her gastroenterology training, she dedicated her research time as a NIH-funded T32 fellow to studying the engineering of Saccharomyces boulardii, a yeast probiotic, for the treatment of various digestive diseases. Additionally, she was selected as an American Gastroenterology Association Technology Summit Innovation Fellow which afforded her the opportunity to learn more about the pipeline of development for various medical devices.
Clinically, she is focused on the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. She is particularly interested in understanding how microbiome perturbations affect the development of IBD and in the use of novel technologies (intestinal ultrasound, drug eluting stents, etc) for the diagnosis and treatment of IBD. She has been involved in medical advocacy since medical school. As a medical student, she served on the American Medical Association’s Council on Science and Public Health. Most recently, she served as the Councilor to the Missouri State Medical Association representing the Resident and Fellow Section. Currently, she represents the Resident and Fellow Section on the Public Health Committee, working to guide policy relating to issues including gun control, reproductive health rights, and climate change. In her spare time, she enjoys swimming, listening to podcasts, and exploring St. Louis with her husband and children.