Navigation Links
Scientists successfully treat new mouse model of inflammatory bowel disease
Date:3/6/2008

March 6, 2008 -- Researchers trying to improve cancer immune therapy have made an unexpected find: They've produced the most accurate mouse model to date of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), a cluster of conditions that afflict approximately 1.4 million Americans with abdominal pain, constipation and diarrhea.

The two most common forms of IBD are Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis (UC); in extreme cases, they can be fatal. The mouse model closely resembles the most serious form of human UC and is uniformly fatal. But scientists successfully treated the mice with a pair of broad-spectrum antibiotics, easing gut inflammation and increasing survival. The results, reported this week in Public Library of Science-Medicine, have researchers eager to follow up both in the clinic and the lab.

"The antibiotics we gave the mice were used individually in unsuccessful clinical trials as ulcerative colitis treatments, but now we have colleagues who are thinking of giving combined therapy an informal try," says co-senior author Thaddeus S. Stappenbeck, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of pathology and immunology and of developmental biology. "The antibiotics probably won't be a cure by themselves, but they may provide us with a potent new approach to combine with other therapies."

The mice may also allow scientists to learn which species of gut microorganisms are becoming embroiled in battles with host immune systems, triggering the symptoms of UC. That information could allow the development of stronger and more specific treatments.

Silvia Kang, a former graduate student in the laboratory of co-senior author Paul Allen, Ph.D., the Robert L. Kroc Professor of Pathology and Immunology, created the mouse model by crossbreeding two mouse lines they had developed for cancer immune therapy research. Each mouse line had one protein knocked out that restrained immune T cells from shifting into attack mode.

"The idea was to see if we
'/>"/>

Contact: Michael C. Purdy
purdym@wustl.edu
314-286-0122
Washington University in St. Louis
Source:Eurekalert

0

GOOD

Page: 1 2

Related biology news :

1. Genes hold the key to how happy we are, scientists say
2. Scientists uncover a novel mechanism that regulates carbon dioxide fixation in plants
3. Bright lights: Mystery of glowing antibody solved by Scripps research scientists
4. Scientists discover how cigarette smoke causes cancer: Study points to new treatments, safer tobacco
5. Exeter scientists pour cold water on EU bird policy
6. Yale scientists create artificial cells that boost the immune response to cancer
7. Scientists unravel the genetic coding of the pea
8. Scientists discover giant fossil frog from hell
9. Advertisers, neuroscientists trace source of emotions in brain
10. Amazon corridors far too narrow, warn scientists
11. Dung happens and helps scientists
Post Your Comments:
*Name:
*Comment:
*Email:
(Date:1/8/2009)...international GIANT (Genetic Investigation of Anth...covery of obesity genes. So far, the scientists ha...e-wide association studies with a total of more th...idate genes were validated in 14 further studies i...TO and MC4R genes already known, it was now possib...
(Date:1/8/2009)...s release is available in Spanish . , Sludg...eused, as fertiliser for soils, for example or to ...ity of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) PhD research t...of EDAR (Estacin Depuradora de Aguas Residuales - ...e chemical properties of the soil and on the water...
(Date:1/7/2009)...ADELPHIA The combination of estrogen plus progest... the news that it may increase their risk of breas...ncer, according to a report published in the Janua...revention , a journal of the American Association ...d never taken these hormones, the use of estrogen ...
(Date:1/7/2009)... RESTON, Virginia, January 7 WCC ... high-performance search and match software, today...ompany as Vice President of,Sales for the ID mark...the biometrics and ID management,industry. He was... where he,was responsible for strategic product d...
Breaking Biology News(10 mins):Obesity starts in the head? 6 newly discovered genes for obesity have a neural effect 2Adding high doses of sludge to neutralize soil acidity not advisable 2Hormone therapy associated with reduced colorectal cancer risk 2From delicious to death 3A Understanding taste 2318 1From delicious to death 3A Understanding taste 2318 2Study finds recent trend of growing US disparities in health not inevitable 12680 1Study finds recent trend of growing US disparities in health not inevitable 12680 2Study finds recent trend of growing US disparities in health not inevitable 12680 3Rats on islands disrupt ecosystems from land to sea researchers find 2315 1Rats on islands disrupt ecosystems from land to sea researchers find 2315 2Rats on islands disrupt ecosystems from land to sea researchers find 2315 3The Ensign Group Establishes 2450 Million Credit Facility with GE Healthcare Financial Services 12679 1The Ensign Group Establishes 2450 Million Credit Facility with GE Healthcare Financial Services 12679 2
...olecules called microRNAs, only 19 to 21 nucleotid...times large sets of genes. They do this by specifi...RNA called messenger RNA, responsible for conveyin...nery that uses that information to create proteins... species of microRNAs have been identified to date...
...y published today in the Journal of Antimicrobial ... that cases of Clostridium difficile infection (CD...f hospital-acquired infection---can be reduced in ...m antibiotics rather than broad-spectrum agents. ..., which now has the lowest CDI rates of any teachi...
...ircumcision significantly reduces the risk of acqu...dy led by University of Illinois at Chicago profes...published in the Feb. 24 issue of The Lancet. ,... 2,784 HIV negative, uncircumcised men between 18 ...ted 26 percent of uncircumcised men are HIV infect...
...r study sheds new light on the role of carbon diox...he research indicates that instead of sinking, car...ria and recycled in the "twilight zone," a dimly l...ause the carbon often never reaches the deep ocean...ering the atmosphere as a green-house gas, the oce...
Other Biology News:Killing the messenger RNA -- But which one? 2Reminding doctors which antibiotics to prescribe cuts C. difficile infection rates 2Reminding doctors which antibiotics to prescribe cuts C. difficile infection rates 3Reminding doctors which antibiotics to prescribe cuts C. difficile infection rates 4Circumcision: A proven strategy to prevent HIV 2Ocean's 'twilight zone' may be a key to understanding climate change 2
(Date:1/9/2009)... HALIFAX, NS, Jan. 9 /PRNewswire/ - ImmunoVaccine ...pany, announced today that it will present at the ...2009 in San Francisco, CA. For more information vi...esident and CEO of ImmunoVaccine Technologies Inc....its superior vaccine delivery system, DepoVax(TM)....
(Date:1/9/2009)... VANCOUVER, Jan. 9 /PRNewswire/ - Sirius Genomics,...oday that it has signed a collaborative agreement ...CCG) Group. The agreement focuses on the continued... for responsiveness to recombinant activated Prote...emark Xigris(R)). , "The UKCCG group is conductin...
(Date:1/9/2009)... CHADDS FORD, Pa., Jan. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -... today that David Holveck, President and Chief Exe...pdate at the J.P. Morgan 27th Annual Healthcare Co....m. Pacific Time. The conference will be held Jan...to a live audio Webcast of the presentation may be...
(Date:1/9/2009)... -Brings Broad Expertise and Strong Leadership Ski...ences Systems- , , PHILADELPHIA, Jan. 9 /PRNews...through nanoscale platforms for molecular diagnost..., today announced the appointment of Michael Koche...chersperger has over two decades of product develo...
Breaking Biology Technology:Sirius Genomics Announces New Collaboration with UK Critical Care Genomics Group 2Endo Pharmaceuticals to Present at the J.P. Morgan 27th Annual Healthcare Conference 2BioNanomatrix Appoints Michael Kochersperger as Vice President of Engineering 2BioNanomatrix Appoints Michael Kochersperger as Vice President of Engineering 3
...dison, Wis. - Governor Jim Doyle announced that t...nd program, which provides low-interest loans as ...ewer than 100 employees, awarded a $250,000 loan t...g to finance their biochip project. , ,Biochips ar...at contain multiple testing factors for properties...
...ast night, as I watched my brothers set off margin...y. I hadnt checked e-mail since Sunday morning, an...end. Here it was, Fourth of July weekend, the mid-...t of my technologies. , ,Ignoring e-mail for 36 ho...alty of sorting through an over-loaded inbox, some...
...ukesha, Wis. - GE Healthcare and Intermountain...n based in Salt Lake City, announced a joint proje...ion administration record, also known as an eMAR, ... involved in the care of a particular patient. , ,...ill work at a joint clinical research center to be...
...esearchers and consultants often point out that re...ion cannot happen unless its culture is changed fi... pin down and even harder to change because it ref...an organization. , ,When culture drives positive ...a distinct leg up on the competition. Just ask any...
Other Biology Technology:Declaring independence from technology (sort of) 2Declaring independence from technology (sort of) 3Why corporate culture counts 2Why corporate culture counts 3Why corporate culture counts 4