Rate My Professor Michael Schultz

Professor Michael Schultz is Professor (Gastroenterology) and Head of the Department of Medicine in the Dunedin School of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine at the University of Otago. He studied at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg and underwent specialist training in Manchester, London, and Regensburg, Germany, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In 2005, he joined the Department of Medicine at the University of Otago as Senior Lecturer and Gastroenterologist in a joint clinical appointment with Te Whatu Ora–Southern. He served as Head of the Department of Medicine from 2016 to 2021, was promoted to Professor in 2018, and since 2023 has been Clinical Director of the Te Whatu Ora Southern Gastroenterology Department. Schultz has been Director of the Gut Health Network, a University of Otago research theme, since 2011, and was elected President of the New Zealand Society of Gastroenterology in November 2016. His expertise encompasses inflammatory bowel disease, coeliac disease, irritable bowel syndrome, endoscopy, and host immune responses in intestinal inflammation.

Schultz's research specializations center on the clinical and basic scientific aspects of inflammatory bowel diseases, emphasizing host-microbe interactions, animal models of experimental colitis, and clinical trials in patients with IBD. Key publications include 'Resident enteric bacteria are necessary for development of spontaneous colitis and immune system activation in interleukin-10-deficient mice' (1998, Infection and Immunity), 'Lactobacillus plantarum 299V in the Treatment and Prevention of Spontaneous Colitis in Interleukin-10-Deficient Mice' (2002, Inflammatory Bowel Diseases), 'Clinical use of E. coli Nissle 1917 in inflammatory bowel disease' (2008, Inflammatory Bowel Diseases), and more recent works such as 'Role of the Dietitian in the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Multidisciplinary Team' (2025) and 'Dietary and physical activity habits of adults with inflammatory bowel disease' (2025). Through leadership in the Gut Health Network and professional societies, he has significantly influenced gastroenterology research and clinical practice in New Zealand.