Feinberg
Northwestern Medicine | Northwestern University | Faculty Profiles

News Center

  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
    • Podcast
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Menu
  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
    • Podcast
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Home » Genetics of Eosinophilic Colitis Revealed
Disease Discoveries

Genetics of Eosinophilic Colitis Revealed

By Will DossFeb 24, 2022
Share
Facebook Twitter Email
Nicoleta Arva, MD, PhD, associate professor of Pathology in the Division of Pediatric Pathology, was a co-author of the study published in Gastroenterology.

A condition called eosinophilic colitis is distinct from other, similar eosinophilic gastrointestinal diseases and inflammatory bowel disease, according to a genetic analysis published in Gastroenterology.

The findings provide basis for improved diagnosis and treatment, according to Nicoleta Arva, MD, PhD, associate professor of Pathology in the Division of Pediatric Pathology and a co-author of the study.

“In the era of personalized medicine, it is important to design targeted therapies based on specific genetic alterations,” Arva said.

Eosinophilic gastrointestinal diseases (EGIDs) are caused when specific white blood cells infiltrate the gastrointestinal tract, causing chronic inflammation and tissue damage. This can occur in several locations, including the esophagus, stomach and colon.

While eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is the most common EGID, eosinophilic colitis (EoC) has more severe symptoms and comorbidities. Beyond EGIDs, EoC also has overlap with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and other diseases that manifest with gut eosinophilic inflammation — complicating diagnosis and treatment development, according to Arva.

In the current study, investigators performed RNA sequencing on colon biopsies from 61 subjects with either EoC, Crohn’s1 disease or healthy controls. Nearly 1,000 genes were differentially expressed in EoC compared to normal participants. Some genes, including CCL11 and CLC, were positively correlated with colonic eosinophil count, a marker of EoC severity.

These genes, and others that were highly expressed in EoC, are involved with decreased cell-cycle functions and increased cell death. This was unexpected, according to Arva, as enrichment of these functions is not seen in other EGIDs.

Further, the scientists developed an “EoC score” that measures departure from normality in the expression of certain EoC-associated genes. Patients with EoC had a significantly higher score compared to patients without EoC, and a modified score also distinguished patients with EoC from those with IBD.

“This study established eosinophilic colitis as a distinct disease, different from other EGIDs and IBD,” Arva said.

These findings also signal which genes and pathways to target for therapeutic development, according to Arva, as previous studies have shown benefits of reducing expression of CLC proteins for treating some inflammation-related symptoms of asthma.

“Similarly, these antibodies may be beneficial for relieving eosinophilic tissue inflammation in EoC,” Arva said.

Guang-Yu Yang, MD, PhD, the Joseph C. Calandra Research Professor of Pathology and Toxicology, vice chair of Anatomical Pathology and director of Gastrointestinal Pathology in the Department of Pathology, and a member of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University, was also a co-author of the study.

Gastroenterology Genetics Research
Share. Facebook Twitter Email

Related Posts

Hospitals Bound to Patient Safety Rules that Aren’t all Backed by Evidence

Jun 24, 2022

Identifying Protein Interactions that Promote Cancer Growth

Jun 24, 2022

Calcium Channel Blockers May Improve Chemotherapy Response

Jun 21, 2022

Comments are closed.

Latest News

Hospitals Bound to Patient Safety Rules that Aren’t all Backed by Evidence

Jun 24, 2022

Identifying Protein Interactions that Promote Cancer Growth

Jun 24, 2022

Combination Treatment May Improve Quality of Life in Kidney Cancer

Jun 23, 2022

Calcium Channel Blockers May Improve Chemotherapy Response

Jun 21, 2022

Expanded Role for Calcium Channels in T-Cells

Jun 17, 2022
  • News Center Home
  • Categories
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
  • News Archives
  • About Us
Flickr Photos
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0070
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0066
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0054
Northwestern University 2022. Photo by Jim Prisching
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0077
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0063
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0111
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0083
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0018
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0023
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0072 (2)
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0120

Northwestern University logo

Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

RSS Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Flickr YouTube Instagram
Copyright © 2022 Northwestern University
  • Contact Northwestern University
  • Disclaimer
  • Campus Emergency Information
  • Policy Statements

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.