Topic Review
Biomarkers in Inflammatory Bowel Disease
The role of biomarkers in the diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease is not fully characterized. C-reactive protein has a short half-life and elevates quickly after the onset of an inflammatory process; the performance is better in Crohn’s disease than in ulcerative colitis. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate is easy to determine, widely available, and cheap, but the long half-life, the influence of age, anemia, smoking, and drugs limit its usefulness. Fecal markers have good specificity, but suboptimal accuracy. Microbial antibodies and novel immunological markers show promise but need further evidence before entering clinical practice. Proteomic methods could represent the dawn of a new era of stool protein/peptide biomarker panels able to select patients at risk of inflammatory bowel disease.
  • 242
  • 16 Oct 2023
Topic Review
Multi-Omics in Inflammatory Bowel Disease
The notion and importance of omes, omics and multi-omics in both health and complex diseases like inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is introduced, followed by a discussion of the various omics believed to be relevant to IBD pathogenesis, and how multi-omics “big data” can generate new insights translatable into useful clinical tools in IBD such as biomarker identification, prediction of remission and relapse, response to therapy, and precision medicine.
  • 238
  • 12 Oct 2023
Topic Review
Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis and Crohn’s Disease
Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis (MAP) is the cause of Johne’s disease (JD), which is a chronic infectious gastrointestinal disease of ruminants and is often fatal. In humans, MAP has been associated with Crohn’s disease (CD) for over a century, without conclusive evidence of pathogenicity. Numerous researchers have contributed to the subject, but there is still a need for evidence of the causation of CD by MAP.
  • 238
  • 07 Mar 2024
Topic Review
Mesenteric Ischemia
Mesenteric ischemia is a medical condition in which injury to the small intestine occurs due to not enough blood supply. It can come on suddenly, known as acute mesenteric ischemia, or gradually, known as chronic mesenteric ischemia. The acute form of the disease often presents with sudden severe abdominal pain and is associated with a high risk of death. The chronic form typically presents more gradually with abdominal pain after eating, unintentional weight loss, vomiting, and fear of eating. Risk factors for acute mesenteric ischemia include atrial fibrillation, heart failure, chronic kidney failure, being prone to forming blood clots, and previous myocardial infarction. There are four mechanisms by which poor blood flow occurs: a blood clot from elsewhere getting lodged in an artery, a new blood clot forming in an artery, a blood clot forming in the superior mesenteric vein, and insufficient blood flow due to low blood pressure or spasms of arteries. Chronic disease is a risk factor for acute disease. The best method of diagnosis is angiography, with computed tomography (CT) being used when that is not available. Treatment of acute ischemia may include stenting or medications to break down the clot provided at the site of obstruction by interventional radiology. Open surgery may also be used to remove or bypass the obstruction and may be required to remove any intestines that may have died. If not rapidly treated outcomes are often poor. Among those affected even with treatment the risk of death is 70% to 90%. In those with chronic disease bypass surgery is the treatment of choice. Those who have thrombosis of the vein may be treated with anticoagulation such as heparin and warfarin, with surgery used if they do not improve. Acute mesenteric ischemia affects about five per hundred thousand people per year in the developed world. Chronic mesenteric ischemia affects about one per hundred thousand people. Most people affected are over 60 years old. Rates are about equal in males and females of the same age. Mesenteric ischemia was first described in 1895.
  • 237
  • 07 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Nlrp3 Inflammasome in Colitis-Associated Colo-Rectal Cancer
Colitis-associated colo-rectal cancer remains the leading cause of mortality in inflammatory bowel diseases, with inflammation remaining one of the bridging points between the two pathologies. The NLRP3 inflammasome complex plays an important role in innate immunity; however, its misregulation can be responsible for the apparition of various pathologies such as ulcerative colitis.
  • 237
  • 21 Feb 2023
Topic Review
CircRNAs in Liver Fibrosis
Liver fibrosis represents the reversible pathological process with the feature of the over-accumulation of extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins within the liver, which results in the deposition of fibrotic tissues and liver dysfunction. Circular noncoding RNAs (CircRNAs) have the characteristic closed loop structures, which show high resistance to exonuclease RNase, making them far more stable and recalcitrant against degradation. CircRNAs increase target gene levels by playing the role of a microRNA (miRNA) sponge.
  • 237
  • 19 Sep 2023
Topic Review
Elevated Serum Alpha-Fetoprotein Levels in Pregnant Women
The most common association related to alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) is fetal neural tube defect (NTD), and indeed, this is where the international career of this protein began. In times when ultrasonography was not yet technically advanced, the detection of high levels of AFP in maternal serum (MS-AFP) and amniotic fluid was the basis for suspecting neural tube defects. In cases where there was no confirmation of NTD, other causes were sought. It has been established that high titers of MS-AFP could originate in other defects or diseases, such as (1) increased proteinuria in severe fetal kidney diseases; (2) pathological overproduction in liver diseases; (3) penetration through the membranes of gastrointestinal organs exposed to amniotic fluid; (4) passage through the walls of skin vessels; and as a side effect of (5) hepatic hematopoiesis and increased transfer through the edematous placenta in fetal anemia. 
  • 236
  • 24 Jan 2024
Topic Review
Antibiotic Therapy for Active Crohn’s Disease Targeting Pathogens
Crohn’s disease (CD) is a multifactorial chronic disorder that involves a combination of factors, including genetics, immune response, and gut microbiota. Therapy includes salicylates, immunosuppressive agents, corticosteroids, and biologic drugs. 
  • 232
  • 09 Feb 2024
Topic Review
Role of Nutrition in Alcoholic Liver Disease
Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) has different stages as it develops, and the severity of ALD is correlated with malnutrition.
  • 231
  • 25 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Endoscopic Ultrasound-Guided Chemoablative Techniques for Pancreatic Cystic Lesions
Pancreatic cystic lesions (PCLs) are known precursors to pancreatic cancer, one of the deadliest types of cancer worldwide. Surgical removal or pancreatectomies remain the central approach to managing precancerous high-risk PCLs. Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS)-guided therapeutic management of PCLs is a novel management strategy for patients with prohibitive surgical risks. Various ablation techniques have been explored utilizing EUS-guided fine needle injection (FNI) of alcohol and chemotherapeutic agents.
  • 231
  • 14 Jul 2023
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