TUESDAY, Dec. 30 (HealthDayNews) -- Two different genes have been linked to inflammatory bowel disease, a discovery that scientists say paves the way for developing new treatments.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore say they have found genes linked to the occurrence of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis in people.

Both conditions primarily affect the intestines, resulting in pain, severe diarrhea, intestinal bleeding, weight loss and fever. Symptoms vary in severity and duration, with some patients suffering from frequent prolonged attacks and others from only a few episodes.

In ulcerative colitis, the inner lining of the colon is inflamed. Crohn's disease causes similar inflammation, but it extends deeper into the intestinal wall and can also involve the small and large intestines.

The study involving the gene linked with ulcerative colitis, NFKB1, appears in the Jan. 1 issue of Human Molecular Genetics. Findings on the gene linked to Crohn's disease, MDR1, are reported in the December issue of the American Journal of Human Genetics.

"Our greatest hope is that by identifying the gene abnormalities associated with inflammatory bowel disease, we'll be able to figure out how they contribute to causing disease and then interfere with that process to stop the disease in its tracks," Dr. Steven Brant, an associate professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins who contributed to both studies, says in a prepared statement.

More information

Here's where you can learn more about inflammatory bowel disease.



--Dennis Thompson



SOURCES: Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, news release, Dec. 22, 2003

Last Updated: Dec-31-2003