Scientists have created a gel for healing intestinal wounds

Inflammatory bowel disease areone of the most common pathologies on our planet. According to official statistics, several billion people have certain problems with the intestines, including Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, inflammation of the duodenum and so on. According to scientists from Harvard University, in the United States alone, about 70,000 new cases of inflammatory bowel disease are recorded per year. However, a new remedy is called to correct the situation, a gel that separates the problem area from the aggressive environment of the intestine, promoting tissue regeneration.

New drug protects intestines and cures inflammatory diseases

What causes inflammatory bowel disease

The exact causes of the most common diseasesthis kind is still poorly understood, but it is believed that the leading role in this process is played by the malfunctioning of the immune system. Inflammatory lesions destroy epithelial cells that function as a barrier. This loss of barrier function leads to a kind of cycle: inflammation provokes even greater destruction of the barrier, and the destruction of the barrier leads to the progression of inflammation.

New gel created by scientists from HarvardUniversity, helps maintain the barrier function of the intestine even in the presence of inflammatory lesions. Animal experiments have shown that the drug, like a patch, closes intestinal wounds and promotes the healing of the mucous membrane. Moreover, existing methods of treatment of such conditions are expensive and not always effective. For example, the standard for today is the use of anti-inflammatory drugs and antibiotics that will fight infections, which are often the "companions" of such lesions. But anti-inflammatory drugs can have serious side effects on the entire body as a whole, and antibiotics can destroy the existing beneficial microflora, which also depends on many functions - from digestion to the production of certain vitamins.

See also: A variety of intestinal microflora can be the secret to a healthy life in old age.

But a research team from HarvardThe university, led by Dr. Neil Joshi, has developed a new approach. The already mentioned gel contains a strain of genetically modified intestinal bacteria E. coli. Their uniqueness lies in the fact that they produce a network of nanofibers, which directly binds to intestinal mucus in order to fill the inflamed areas, protecting them from intestinal microbes and factors of an aggressive intestinal environment.

Using our “bacterial therapy” approachwe have created unique biomaterials that are produced by special bacteria and attach to the walls of the intestine, while firmly adhering to a viscous and moving layer of mucus. This is a challenge. We called this method The Probiotic Associated Therapeutic Curli Hybrids (PATCH). - say the authors of the work.

From left to right: healthy intestinal tissue, intestines in the stage of inflammation and intestines after the use of a new drug

In order to create a unique gel, the teamscientists programmed a laboratory strain of E. coli for the synthesis and secretion of a modified protein CsgA. It possesses the necessary properties, but the problem is, it begins to act only in the intestinal environment. Therefore, it must be developed "on the spot." For this, a genetically modified strain of bacteria is included in the new drug. About new technologies in the field of medicine and not only we regularly inform on our page in Yandex.Zen. So be sure to sign up.

Moreover, in the course of research, we found that bacteria, even when taken by mouth, are also colonized and live in the intestinal tract, so the drug will be extremely convenient for patients.

Scientists believe their approach may beused as a concomitant therapy method. Which can be used in addition to existing anti-inflammatory and antibacterial methods, as well as treatment regimens that reduce the activity of the immune system (which, as already mentioned, is considered a leading factor in the development of inflammation). In this case, additional protection of the intestines with the gel comes in handy.