Gene and Mirna Regulatory Networks During Different Stages of Crohn's Disease.

Background And Aims: Early treatment of Crohn's disease [CD] is required in order to optimize patient outcomes. To this end, we need to gain a better understanding of the molecular changes at the onset of CD.

Methods: As a model for the earliest mucosal CD lesions, we study post-operative recurrent CD [Rutgeerts score ≥ i2b].

Strong Upregulation of AIM2 and IFI16 Inflammasomes in the Mucosa of Patients with Active Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

Background: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is characterized by a chronic inflammation of the gut, partly driven by defects in the innate immune system. Considering the central role of inflammasome signaling in innate immunity, we studied inflammasome components in IBD mucosa.

Methods: Expression of genes encoding inflammasome sensor subunits was investigated in colonic mucosal biopsies from 2 cohorts of patients with IBD and controls.

Integrated miRNA and mRNA expression profiling in inflamed colon of patients with ulcerative colitis.

Background: Ulcerative colitis (UC) is associated with differential colonic expression of genes involved in immune response (e.g. IL8) and barrier integrity (e.

Infliximab restores the dysfunctional matrix remodeling protein and growth factor gene expression in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Background: Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMPs), a disintegrin and metalloprotease with thrombospondin motifs [ADAM(TS)s] and growth factors are involved in inflammation and tissue damage and repair, all occurring in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). We studied the impact of anti-inflammatory therapy with infliximab on mucosal expression of these tissue remodeling genes in patients with IBD.

Methods: Mucosal gene expression of 23 MMPs, 4 TIMPs, 50 ADAM(TS)s, and 158 growth factors was investigated in 61 patients with IBD before and after the first infliximab therapy and in 12 controls, with microarrays and quantitative RT-PCR.

Genetic association and functional role of Crohn disease risk alleles involved in microbial sensing, autophagy, and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress.

Genome-wide association studies have identified several genes implicated in autophagy (ATG16L1, IRGM, ULK1, LRRK2, and MTMR3), intracellular bacterial sensing (NOD2), and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress (XBP1 and ORMDL3) to be associated with Crohn disease (CD). We studied the known CD-associated variants in these genes in a large cohort of 3451 individuals (1744 CD patients, 793 ulcerative colitis (UC) patients and 914 healthy controls). We also investigated the functional phenotype linked to these genetic variants.

The haematopoietic effect of recombinant human erythropoietin in haemodialysis is independent of the mode of administration (i.v. or s.c.).

Background: Previous studies comparing intravenous (i.v.) and subcutaneous (s.