Publications by authors named "Ana Maria Gonzalez-Castro"
Microscopic colitis (MC) is an emergent group of chronic inflammatory diseases of the colon, and celiac disease (CD) is a chronic gluten-induced immune-mediated enteropathy affecting the small bowel. We performed a narrative review to provide an overview regarding the relationship between both disorders, analyzing the most recent studies published at the epidemiological, clinical and pathophysiological levels. In fact, MC and CD are concomitantly prevalent in approximately 6% of the cases, mainly in the subset of refractory patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: There is growing evidence of the significance of gastrointestinal complaints in the impairment of the intestinal mucosal barrier function and inflammation in fibromyalgia (FM) and in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). However, data on intestinal permeability and gut barrier dysfunction in FM and ME/CFS are still limited with conflicting results. This study aimed to assess circulating biomarkers potentially related to intestinal barrier dysfunction and bacterial translocation and their association with self-reported symptoms in these conditions.
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- IBS is a chronic gut-brain disorder often linked with mental health issues like depression and anxiety, and the genetic connections between them are still not fully understood.
- Recent research discovered a strong genetic overlap between IBS and these mental conditions, identifying 42 significant genetic variants related to IBS, many of which are new.
- The study also found evidence of bidirectional causal relationships, indicating that genetic factors for IBS can influence mental health issues, especially anxiety.
There is converging and increasing evidence, but also uncertainty, for the role of abnormal intestinal epithelial barrier function in the origin and development of a growing number of human gastrointestinal and extraintestinal inflammatory disorders, and their related complaints. Despite a vast literature addressing factors and mechanisms underlying changes in intestinal permeability in humans, and its connection to the appearance and severity of clinical symptoms, the ultimate link remains to be established in many cases. Accordingly, there are no directives or clinical guidelines related to the therapeutic management of intestinal permeability disorders that allow health professionals involved in the management of these patients to carry out a consensus treatment based on clinical evidence.
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- IBS is characterized by damaged intestinal barrier and inflammation, especially in females.
- Research indicates that ovarian hormones affect IBS severity, but the reasons for more women suffering from IBS are not fully understood.
- Key findings suggest that disruptions in specific molecular pathways, particularly the TESK1/CFL1 pathway, contribute to the intestinal issues in diarrhea-predominant IBS, predominantly impacting female patients.
Objective: Recently, the authors demonstrated altered gene expression in the jejunal mucosa of diarrhoea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome patients (IBS-D); specifically, the authors showed that genes related to mast cells and the intercellular apical junction complex (AJC) were expressed differently than in healthy subjects. The aim of the authors here was to determine whether these alterations are associated with structural abnormalities in AJC and their relationship with mast cell activation and IBS-D clinical manifestations.
Design: A clinical assessment and a jejunal biopsy were obtained in IBS-D patients (n=45) and healthy subjects (n=30).