Current Pharmaceutical Design - Volume 9, Issue 4, 2003

Although the cause of Crohn's disease remains unknown considerable progress has been made in recent years to unravel the pathogenesis of the inflammatory processes seen in chronic idiopathic inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). Th-1 lymphocytes seem to orchestrate the inflammation through the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as IFN-γ, IL-1β and tumor necrosis factor (TNF). After isolation and character Read More

Proinflammatory cytokines have been demonstrated to play a crucial role in the pathogenesis and physiopathology of various chronic inflammatory conditions including Crohn's disease (CD). Among these cytokines, interleukin-6 (IL-6) must be especially important because increased serum concentrations of acute phase proteins, reduced level of serum albumin, and remarkable thrombocytosis are all well-explained by the in Read More

Background The administration of steroids is not always effective for the treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC). Their long-term use often causes adverse effects which sometimes result in their stoppage and acute exacerbation. Therefore, an alternative treatment is necessary in order to decrease steroid dosage and avoid the clinical problems associated with steroids.Methods The effectiveness and adverse effects of a leu Read More

Even with the development of new therapeutic agents, such as infliximab, enteral nutrition (EN) and parenteral nutrition (PN) therapies remain important for the treatment of Crohn's disease because Crohn's patients often require nutritional support. Furthermore, nutritional therapies can be used in the control of disease activity. Elemental diets, which are mainly used in EN therapy, consist of a refined amino acid mixture, glu Read More

Because the intestinal microflora play an important role in the development of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), there is currently some interest in the manipulation of the composition of the microflora towards a potentially more remedial community. This review summarizes the clinical and experimental efficacy of the manipulation of microflora by the use of prebiotics, probiotics, synbiotics, and antibiotics in IBD. Prebiotics, Read More

Luminal nutrition is important for maintenance of gastrointestinal mucosal structure and function. In particular, short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), metabolic products of anaerobic bacterial fermentation of dietary fiber and resistant starch, are particularly important as the preferred respiratory fuel of the colonocytes. A variety of biological effects of SCFAs have been reported, and there is now increasing number of experimental Read More