A brief summary of inflammatory intestinal disease
Crohn’s disease and Colitis Ulcerosa are two distinct types of inflammatory intestinal disease. They are chronic diseases, characterised by inflammations in the intestine. Colitis Ulcerosa most commonly involve the large intestine, whereas Crohn’s disease can affect the dietary system from mouth to anus, and possible affect more than one area at once. Inflammations in the intestines can result in bloody stool, malabsorption, and diarrhoea, which can result in anaemia and a general sense of discomfort.
The cause of these diseases isn’t completely clear, however it is believed that they are caused by an unintended process from the immune system, where the cells react to something foreign in the body, such as a microorganism, which lead to the secretion of antibodies that mistakenly also targets the mucous membrane in the intestines, resulting in inflammation.
Current recommended treatment
Today, the inflammatory diseases in the intestines are treated with immune suppressant medicaments, such as corticosteroids and TNF-alpha-suppressors. TNF-alpha is a protein which is produced during inflammation and promotes the inflammation, which is why the suppressant ease the symptoms and restrict the spread of the inflammation. However, numerous patients respond poorly to this treatment and suffer side effects, such as infection, osteoporosis, and vomiting. In as much as 40 % of cases, TNF-alpha-suppressors are ineffectual, and new medicinal points of attack are therefore of great interest.
New medicinal point of attack
A study published in May of 2017 investigated the effects of the cytokine Oncostatin M (OSM), which is a small protein in the immune system that aids the inflammatory response. However, the protein is also involved in other processes, such as maintaining healthy tissue in the liver and heart. Overproduction of OSM has been linked to several diseases, such as arteriosclerosis, inflammation in the skin and lungs, rheumatoid arthritis, and several types of cancer.
Previous studies have suggested that a suppression of cytokines is the point of attack in patients with inflammatory diseases in the intestine, who do not respond to TNF-alpha-suppressors, but these studies have not been able to find the correct cytokine nor medicament with the desired effect. However, the new study was able to prove that patients with inflammatory diseases in the intestine have an increased level of OSM in the blood. The study also found that the patients with the highest levels of OSM, responded poorest to TNF-alpha-suppressors. This led the researchers to develop medicaments capable of blocking this cytokine. OSM-suppressors were tested on mice with inflammatory intestine diseases and proved to reduce inflammation.
Therefore, scientists believe that we can measure the levels of OSM in the blood, and, on that basis, judge whether TNF-alpha-suppressors or OSM-suppressors would have a greater effect on the patient - thereby, lessening the symptoms and reducing the spread of inflammation more rapidly.
