Lay Summary

Proposal No.   IBD-0199R
Principal Investigator:  Raja Fayad, M.D.
Current Applicant Organization: South Carolina Research Foundation (Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.A.)
Original Applicant Organization:  The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois (Chicago, U.S.A.)
Project Title: Adipose tissue macrophages: role in the development of strictures in Crohn's disease
Period of Award:  October 1, 2007 - November 30, 2010

We will study the effect of macrophages and T cells associated with fat cells on Crohn’s disease pathology. Macrophages and T cells live side by side with fat cells in the body. The purpose of this study is to understand the functions that macrophages may have in proximity with fat cells in the gut. We will study whether these cells, in the presence of T cells, become active and, thus, more able to induce inflammation or to form strictures.

Inflammation is the phenomenon that induces symptoms and disease in subjects with ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease. The fat surrounding the inflamed area in the gut produces more inflammatory products. By studying the gut of people with and without inflammation, we can understand whether there are differences in the two groups with respect to fat, and their lipid (fat) components’ participation in stricture formation. Stricture is an abnormal narrowing of a body passage of the gut that leads to major complications and, thus, is a frequent indication for surgical intervention in patients with Crohn’s disease.