{"id":35930,"date":"2024-06-06T04:32:34","date_gmt":"2024-06-06T04:32:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/major-cause-of-inflammatory-bowel-disease-found\/"},"modified":"2024-06-06T04:32:35","modified_gmt":"2024-06-06T04:32:35","slug":"major-cause-of-inflammatory-bowel-disease-found","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/major-cause-of-inflammatory-bowel-disease-found\/","title":{"rendered":"Major cause of inflammatory bowel disease found"},"content":{"rendered":"


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James Gallagher,<\/span>Health and science correspondent, <\/span>@JamesTGallagher<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"LaurenLauren Golightly<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Lauren Golightly has Crohn\u2019s Disease, a type of IBD<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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A major cause of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has been discovered by UK scientists.<\/p>\n

They found a weak spot in our DNA that is present in 95% of people with the disease.<\/p>\n

It makes it much easier for some immune cells to go haywire and drive excessive inflammation in the bowels.<\/p>\n

The team have found drugs that already exist seem to reverse the disease in laboratory experiments and are now aiming for human trials.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are the most common forms of inflammatory bowel disease. They are estimated to affect half a million people in the UK.<\/p>\n

It often starts as a teenager or young adult.<\/p>\n

Lauren Golightly, who is now 27, had her first symptoms when she was 16 years old and had stomach cramps and blood in her poo.<\/p>\n

But this was put down to partying and it was not until she was 21 and having surgery to remove her appendix that doctors realised she had Crohn\u2019s disease.<\/p>\n

Three years ago she needed an emergency stoma after part of her intestines had \u201cshut down\u201d and still has to \u201ctake a lot of pain medication\u201d because of the number of operations she has needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not the life I\u2019d aspire to be living,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

So what is going wrong?<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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One part of the immune system that is highly implicated in IBD are white blood cells called macrophages.<\/p>\n

These flood the linings of the intestines where they release chemicals \u2013 called cytokines \u2013 that lead to massive inflammation.<\/p>\n

Inflammation is part of the body\u2019s normal response to infection, but too much for too long can have devastating health consequences.<\/p>\n

The group of researchers at the Francis Crick Institute and University College London performed a deep genetic analysis to try to unpick the cause of the IBD. <\/p>\n

They discovered a section of genetic code \u2013 or DNA \u2013 that turns out to be the macrophage\u2019s \u201cmaster regulator\u201d of inflammation. <\/p>\n

It sits right at \u201cthe top of the pyramid\u201d says Dr James Lee, from the Francis Crick Institute.<\/p>\n

The gene controls the suite of inflammatory chemicals the macrophages release, and some people are born with a version that make their body prone to responding excessively. <\/p>\n

Dr Lee told me: \u201cThis is undoubtedly one of the central pathways that goes wrong for people to get inflammatory bowel disease.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is the process by which one of the most important cells that causes inflammatory bowel disease goes wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

World free from IBD?<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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Further experiments, detailed in the journal Nature<\/a>, showed drugs that are already approved for other conditions such as cancer were able to calm this excessive inflammation.<\/p>\n

These were performed using samples from patients with IBD. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe found not only how and why it goes wrong, but potentially a new way of treating these diseases,\u201d says Dr Lee.<\/p>\n

Yet, there is not going to be an new IBD treatment imminently.<\/p>\n

The researchers have a head start as drugs already exist, but they need to find a way of targeting just the macrophages so they do not cause side effects throughout the body. <\/p>\n

The drugs would also need to be precisely calibrated to calm the IBD, but not leave a patient susceptible to infection by switching off the good side of inflammation in fighting disease. <\/p>\n

They aim is to start clinical trials within five years.<\/p>\n

“This research is a really exciting step towards the possibility of a world free from Crohn’s and colitis one day,” Ruth Wakeman, from the charity Crohn’s & Colitis UK said.<\/p>\n

She added: \u201cCrohn’s and colitis are complex, lifelong conditions for which there is no cure, but research like this is helping us to answer some of the big questions about what causes them.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, genetic susceptibility is still only half the story. It also takes something to trigger the development of IBD, with diet and antibiotic use all implicated. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Symptoms of IBD<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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  • diarrhoea<\/li>\n
  • stomach pain or cramps<\/li>\n
  • blood in poo<\/li>\n
  • bleeding from your bottom<\/li>\n
  • fatigue<\/li>\n
  • losing weight without trying<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    The disease is distinct from irritable bowel syndrome (or IBS) although some of the symptoms overlap. A diagnosis of IBD is only made if there is inflammation in the bowels.<\/p>\n

    Follow <\/i>James on X<\/i><\/a> (formerly Twitter)<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n