Archive for gastroenterology
Sweet! How C. difficile toxin A enters intestinal cells
Clostridiodes difficile infection has become a leading cause of severe, sometimes fatal diarrheal illness. It flourishes best in hospitals and long-term care facilities where people are on long-term antibiotic treatment, but it’s also an increasing problem in the community. Much of the damage from C. diff is caused by toxins the bacterium produces, which damage ... Read More about Sweet! How C. difficile toxin A enters intestinal cells
Stool transplant found safe, effective for ‘C. diff’ in children
Diarrhea caused by Clostridiodes (formerly Clostridium) difficile infections is on the rise among children; one population-based study found a 12.5-fold increase in incidence from 1991 to 2009. For reasons that aren’t clear, C. difficile is more frequently striking children without the usual risk factors, such as hospitalization or antibiotic exposure. One thing that is known ... Read More about Stool transplant found safe, effective for ‘C. diff’ in children
Lia the ballerina: Off the couch and onto the stage
No matter what 3-year-old Lia is doing — playing dress-up, singing for her family, or running around with her preschool friends — you can be sure she’ll do it with pizzazz. “She’s a total girly girl,” says her mom, Kaitlyn. “She would wear makeup if I let her!” Watching her jump and twirl, you’d never ... Read More about Lia the ballerina: Off the couch and onto the stage
Science Seen: An intestinal toxin’s trick, a potential cancer fighter
Clostridium difficile, also called “C. diff,” causes severe gastrointestinal tract infections and tops the CDC’s list of urgent drug-resistant threats. In work published in Nature in 2016, Min Dong, PhD, and colleagues found the elusive portal that enables a key C. diff toxin, toxin B, to enter the intestines’ outer cells and break down the ... Read More about Science Seen: An intestinal toxin’s trick, a potential cancer fighter
Intestine chip models gut function, in disease and in health
The small intestine is much more than a digestive organ. It’s a major home to our microbiome, it’s a key site where mucosal immunity develops and it provides a protective barrier against a variety of infections. Animal models don’t do justice to the human intestine in all its complexity. Attempts to better model human intestinal function ... Read More about Intestine chip models gut function, in disease and in health
Could fecal transplants heal Crohn’s and colitis in children? Two trials are set to find out
Could an exciting potential treatment for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) be found in the gastrointestinal tract itself? That’s the theory behind a pair of new studies by Stacy A. Kahn, MD, which will investigate the potential role of fecal microbial transplant (FMT) in the treatment of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis in children. In IBD, the ... Read More about Could fecal transplants heal Crohn’s and colitis in children? Two trials are set to find out
Entry door for deadly C. difficile toxin suggests new mode of protection
Clostridium difficile, also called “C. diff,” tops the CDC’s list of urgent drug-resistant threats. Marked by severe diarrhea and intestinal inflammation, C. diff has become a leading cause of death from gastrointestinal illness, causing half a million infections a year in the U.S. alone. C. diff flourishes best in hospitals and long-term care facilities where people are on ... Read More about Entry door for deadly C. difficile toxin suggests new mode of protection
Respiratory illness in children with gastroesophageal reflux: Are acid blockers part of the problem?
Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), in which stomach acids back up into the esophagus, is increasingly diagnosed in children. One study based on insurance-claims data found that GERD diagnoses in infants more than tripled between 2000 and 2005 (from 3.4 to 12.3 percent). In addition to heartburn and chest pain, GERD has been implicated in cough, wheezing ... Read More about Respiratory illness in children with gastroesophageal reflux: Are acid blockers part of the problem?
Frozen poop pill offers a less invasive treatment option for emerging infectious disease
The fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) movement is catching the attention of scientists, researchers and the media nationwide. Currently, fecal transplantation delivers pre-screened, healthy human donor stool to a patient via colonoscopy or by nasogastric tube. It’s prescribed as an effective alternative to long-term antibiotic use in treating debilitating infectious diseases such as Clostridium difficile, also known ... Read More about Frozen poop pill offers a less invasive treatment option for emerging infectious disease
Building a body, one organ chip at a time
They don’t look like much sitting in your hand. A few pieces of clear plastic, each smaller than an Altoids tin, with channels visible inside and holes for plugging tubing into them. But fill them with cells and treat those cells the right way, and they turn into something amazing: tiny hearts, lungs, guts, kidneys. ... Read More about Building a body, one organ chip at a time