Feature Channels: Digestive Disorders

• share
• favorite_border

• share
• favorite_border

• share
• favorite_border

Be one of the first to read the October 2020 issue of the journal Diseases of the Colon and Rectum! Here are the editor's top picks

• share
• favorite_border

In a large group of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer, consumption of a few cups of coffee a day was associated with longer survival and a lower risk of the cancer worsening, researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and other organizations report in a new study.

• share
• favorite_border

African American men have the lowest five-year survival rate for colorectal cancer (CRC) out of any other racial group. A major factor is low adherence to recommended early detection screening. Yet published research on effective strategies to increase screening for this group specifically are minimal. These findings were published today in PLOS ONE.

• share
• favorite_border

What causes some people to develop chronic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, cancer and metabolic syndrome while others stay healthy? A major clue could be found in their gut microbiome — the trillions of microbes living inside the digestive system that regulate various bodily functions.

• share
• favorite_border

Many clinicians rely on self-reports from their high-risk patients about their need and proper interval for repeat surveillance colonoscopy. Researchers analyzed data over four years to explore the knowledge of these high-risk patients. Twenty-eight percent were unaware of either the need for a repeat colonoscopy or the proper surveillance interval. Of these, 16.6 percent were unaware of the proper three-year interval to obtain a follow-up surveillance colonoscopy. Also, 12 percent were not even aware that they required a follow-up surveillance colonoscopy.

• share
• favorite_border

• share
• favorite_border

Over 1,000 children from Northern Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales, known as ‘COVID Warriors’ have had their antibodies measured in the UK-wide trial called ‘Seroprevalence of SARS-Cov-2 infection in healthy children’.

• share
• favorite_border

Researchers at UC San Diego School of Medicine report that the lasting nature of inflammatory bowel disease may be due to a type of long-lived immune cell that can provoke persistent, damaging inflammation in the intestinal tract.

• share
• favorite_border

Each person’s gut virus composition is as unique as a fingerprint, according to the first study to assemble a comprehensive database of viral populations in the human digestive system.

• share
• favorite_border

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine report that fructose only adversely affects the liver after it reaches the intestines, where the sugar disrupts the epithelial barrier protecting internal organs from bacterial toxins in the gut.

• share
• favorite_border

Computed tomography (CT) is used at a higher rate than ultrasound in children with developmental and cognitive impairments to diagnose appendicitis, even though CT scans increase radiation risk in smaller bodies.

• share
• favorite_border

Mountainside Medical Group announced today that Sameet Shah, D.O., has joined the practice to serve the community’s growing need in the field of gastroenterology.

• share
• favorite_border

B cells are white blood cells that develop to produce antibodies.

• share
• favorite_border

Scientists at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute have uncovered a novel drug target, a protein called PPP1R1B, that stops the deadly spread of pancreatic cancer, called metastasis, when inhibited in mice. Published in Gastroenterology, the findings are a first step toward a potential treatment for one of the deadliest cancers known today.

• share
• favorite_border

We may not think about it often, but our gut is home to a complex ecosystem of microorganisms that play a critical role in how we function.

• share
• favorite_border

• share
• favorite_border

"Because it affects them in their childbearing years, women need to know when it is safe to get pregnant," says Dr. Jacqueline Wolf, a national expert on IBD and pregnancy and a physician in the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, shares her expertise on Crohn's disease and pregnancy.

• share
• favorite_border

A team of developmental biologists at the Morgridge Institute for Research has discovered a means by which schistosomes, parasitic worms that infect more than 200 million people in tropical climates, are able to outfox the host’s immune system.

• share
• favorite_border

Although rates of surgery for Crohn’s disease have decreased over the years, many patients still require surgical treatment – due to inadequate responses to medical therapy, severe attacks of acute colitis, and many other situations. Reflecting the latest research evidence and clinical practice, an updated set of recommendations for surgery in patients with Crohn’s disease have been published in Diseases of the Colon & Rectum (DC&R), the official journal of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons (ASCRS). The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.

• share
• favorite_border

Cedars-Sinai announced a $25 million gift from Martha L. Karsh and Bruce A. Karsh, and the Karsh Family Foundation, to support the treatment of digestive and liver diseases and the advancement of innovative research. The current division of Digestive and Liver Diseases will be renamed the Karsh Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology.

• share
• favorite_border

UC Davis researchers have found that combining a Western-style high-fat diet with antibiotic use significantly increases the risk of developing pre- inflammatory bowel disease. This combination shuts down the mitochondria in cells of the colon lining, leading to gut inflammation. Mesalazine can help restart the mitochondria and treat pre-IBD condition.

• share
• favorite_border

A new study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has found that mice infected with Chikungunya virus get less sick and are less likely to transmit the virus to mosquitoes if they have healthy gut microbiomes.

• share
• favorite_border

Findings from an online survey of more than 53,000 American adults suggest that using heartburn medications known as proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) once or twice daily significantly increases the odds of a positive test for COVID-19 compared to those who do not take PPIs. This research appeared online July 7, 2020 in pre-print format in The American Journal of Gastroenterology.

• share
• favorite_border

Milestone for therapeutic development of peptides against gastrointestinal disordersThe fascinating family of trefoil factor peptides brings hope to both research and industry to improve the treatment of chronic disorders such as Crohn’s disease. For the first time, a team led by ERC awardee Markus Muttenthaler from the Faculty of Chemistry of the University of Vienna succeeded in the synthesis and folding of the peptide TFF1, a key player in mucosal protection and repair.

• share
• favorite_border

In a newly published experimental study, the consumption of dietary fibre from oat and rye brans supported the growth of beneficial gut microbiota, which in turn ameliorated cholesterol metabolism, enhanced gut barrier function and reduced hepatic inflammation.

• share
• favorite_border

• share
• favorite_border

A new study finds antibiotic exposure during crucial developmental periods in early childhood alters digestive tract nerve function and bacterial colonies. The study is published in the American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology.

• share
• favorite_border

A new study published in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology led by Maria T. Abreu, M.D., professor of medicine and professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, found that eating diets low in fat and high in fiber may improve the quality of life of patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) — even those in remission.

• share
• favorite_border

After one consumes food or a beverage containing fructose, the gut helps to shield the liver from damage by breaking down the sugar. However, the consumption of too much fructose can overwhelm the gut, causing fructose to “spill over” into the liver, where it wreaks havoc and causes fatty liver, researchers discovered.

• share
• favorite_border

The 2020 Warren Alpert Foundation Prize has been awarded to a trio of researchers for seminal discoveries about the function of key intestinal hormones, their effects on metabolism and the subsequent design of treatments for type 2 diabetes, obesity and short bowel syndrome.

• share
• favorite_border

A new study describes how poor oral health may worsen gut inflammation.

• share
• favorite_border

DALLAS – June 9, 2020 – Serotonin, a chemical known for its role in producing feelings of well-being and happiness in the brain, can reduce the ability of some intestinal pathogens to cause deadly infections, new research by UT Southwestern scientists suggests. The findings, publishing online today in Cell Host & Microbe, could offer a new way to fight infections for which few truly effective treatments currently exist.

• share
• favorite_border

For children and young adults with Crohn’s disease, steroid-sparing therapies may help reduce the risk of developing a severe and common complication of the inflammatory bowel condition, a new study suggests.

• share
• favorite_border

A study led by University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center researchers showed that patients who already used opioids, sedatives or antidepressants prior to colorectal surgery experience significantly more complications post-surgery.

• share
• favorite_border

A study of teens diagnosed with the vaping-linked respiratory disease EVALI revealed that most also had gastrointestinal symptoms and a history of psychosocial factors, including substance abuse, UT Southwestern researchers found in one of the first clinical reviews of its kind.

• share
• favorite_border

• share
• favorite_border

• share
• favorite_border

Using rabies virus injected into the stomach of rats, researchers trace the nerves back to the brain and find distinct "fight or flight" and "rest and digest" circuits. These results explain how mental states can affect the gut, and present new ways to treat gastrointestinal problems.

• share
• favorite_border

In an upcoming study to be published in Gastroenterology, researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and the University of North Carolina School of Medicine report on the clinical course of COVID-19 and risk factors for adverse outcomes in a large cohort of patients with IBD collected through an international registry.

• share
• favorite_border

A possible new strategy for treating pancreatic cancer highlights the promise of collaboration between experts in both precision medicine and immunology. The findings from a team led by Agnieszka Witkiewicz, MD, and Erik Knudsen, PhD, at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and published today in the journal Gut suggest a combination treatment approach that can make some breakthrough immunotherapy drugs effective for more patients with pancreatic cancer.

• share
• favorite_border

A systematic review and meta-analysis has determined there is a nine-fold increased risk of having IBD for patients with a previous diagnosis of celiac disease. Similarly, the risk for celiac disease is increased in IBD patients, though to a smaller extent.

• share
• favorite_border

Children suffering from sickness and diarrhea, coupled with a fever or history of exposure to coronavirus, should be suspected of being infected with COVID-19, recommends a new study published in Frontiers in Pediatrics.

• share
• favorite_border

Elevated blood levels of toxic chemicals found in pesticides, nonstick cookware, and fire retardants have been tied to an increased risk for celiac disease in young people, new research shows.

• share
• favorite_border

A study from UT Southwestern researchers sheds new light on how the bug that's the No. 1 cause of bacterial diarrhea finds its way through the human gut.

• share
• favorite_border

A type of E. coli bacteria that causes bloody diarrhea uses an amino acid produced by the body in response to infection to intensify its symptoms, according to a new study from UT Southwestern scientists.

• share
• favorite_border

Reflecting research-driven changes in clinical practice, a revised set of evidence-based recommendations for the medical and surgical treatment of left-sided colonic diverticulitis has been published in Diseases of the Colon & Rectum (DC&R), the official journal of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons (ASCRS). The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.

• share
• favorite_border

Clinical studies with negative findings are the focus of a new “Negative Issue” of The American Journal of Gastroenterology (AJG) dedicated to studies with negative findings in the belief that significant information can be learned from studies that do not produce positive results but which may guide what physicians should not do in clinical practice.

• share
• favorite_border