Ulcerative Colitis: Li M

Huynh HQ, deBruyn J, Guan L, Diaz H, Li M, Girgis S, Turner J, Fedorak R, Madsen K. · Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Department of Pediatrics, University of Alberta, Stollery Children's Hospital, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. · Inflamm Bowel Dis. · Pubmed #19067432 No free full text.

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that has periods of exacerbated symptoms and periods that are symptom-free. The treatment of active UC with probiotic bacteria could possibly induce remission. We evaluated the clinical efficacy and safety profile of probiotic preparation VSL#3 in the treatment of mild to moderate acute UC in the pediatric population. METHODS: Eighteen eligible patients between the ages of 3-17 with mild to moderate acute UC received open-label VSL#3 daily in 2 divided doses for 8 weeks. The disease activity pre- and post-VSL#3 therapy was assessed by the simple clinical colitis activity index (SCCAI); Mayo ulcerative colitis endoscopic score; inflammatory markers: erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP); serum cytokine profiling; and rectal tissue microbial profiling done at baseline and at week 8. RESULTS: Thirteen patients completed 8 weeks of VSL#3 treatment and 5 patients were withdrawn due to lack of improvement. Remission (defined as SCCAI <or=3) was achieved in 56% of children (n = 10); response (decrease in SCCAI >or=2, but final score <or=5) in 6% (n = 1); and no change or worsening in 39% (n = 7). Post-VSL#3 treatments demonstrated a bacterial taxonomy change in rectal biopsy. The VSL#3 was well tolerated in clinical trials and no biochemical and clinical adverse effects attributed to VSL#3 were identified. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment of pediatric patients diagnosed with mild to moderate UC with VSL#3 resulted in a remission rate of 56% and a combined remission/response rate of 61%.

Li M, Gao X, Guo CC, Wu KC, Zhang X, Hu PJ. · Department of Gastroenterology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhongshan University, Guangzhou 510089, Guangdong Province, China. · World J Gastroenterol. · Pubmed #18756601 links to  free full text

Abstract: AIM: To investigate the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) distribution of NOD2/CARD15 (R702W, G908R), OCTN1 1672C/T and OCTN2-207G/C in Chinese patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). METHODS: A total of 61 patients with Crohn's disease (CD), 151 patients with ulcerative colitis (UC), and 200 unrelated healthy controls were genotyped. Genotyping was performed by sequence specific primer polymerase chain reaction (PCR-SSP) or by restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis. RESULTS: Among the subjects in our study groups, including patients with CD, UC and healthy controls, none had OCTN and CARD15 variants and very rare IBD family history was found in our patients with the percentage of 0 (0/61 with CD) and 1.3% (2/151 with UC). CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that although OCTN or CARD15 variation is associated with susceptibility to IBD in Western populations, these might be rare and may not be associated with susceptibility to IBD in Chinese patients.