Health News

Researchers engineer novel disease model to identify potential targets for ulcerative colitis drugs

As reported in Nature Communications, researchers from Cleveland Clinic’s Lerner Research Institute have developed a novel, patient-derived model of ulcerative colitis, which will help advance studies into new treatments for the chronic inflammatory bowel disease. The team used the model to identify a promising target that could be inhibited to slow disease progression.Ulcerative colitis is […]

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New material could make it easier to remove colon polyps: Gel cushion used to elevate polyps during endoscopy could reduce the risk of tearing the colon lining

More than 15 million colonoscopies are performed in the United States every year, and in at least 20 percent of those, gastroenterologists end up removing precancerous growths from the colon. Eliminating these early-stage lesions, known as polyps, is the best way to prevent colon cancer from developing. To reduce the risk of tearing the colon […]

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Movement toward a stool test for liver cirrhosis

For the estimated 100 million U.S. adults and children living with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), whether or not they have liver cirrhosis, or scarring, is an important predictor for survival. Yet it’s difficult and invasive to detect liver cirrhosis before it is well advanced. In an effort to quickly and easily identify people at […]

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When mucus can be key to treating colon and airway diseases

New research reveals how healthy cells in our bodies produce mucins — the main component of mucous, which protects our intestine and airway from pathogens, toxins and allergens. Scientists have already linked defects in mucins secretion to airway and colonic diseases, such as asthma or ulcerative colitis. Now, researchers at Malhotra’s laboratory in Barcelona, reveal […]

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Increased mortality in children with inflammatory bowel disease

Children who develop inflammatory bowel disease (ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease) have an increased risk of death, both in childhood and later in life, a study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden published in the journal Gastroenterology reports. It is therefore important that patients who are diagnosed as children are carefully monitored, argue the researchers behind […]

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Cannabis link to relieving intestinal inflammation explained

Reports from cannabis users that the drug reduces the symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) may finally be explained by new research from the University of Massachusetts Medical School and the University of Bath showing that endocannabinoids help control and prevent intestinal inflammation in mice. This is the first-time scientists have reported a biological mechanism […]