Developing sensor materials for screening intestinal diseases

Intestinal diseases have always been the focus of clinicians and scientific researchers, which have high mortality and morbidity rates, and bring huge encumbrance on the public medical system and economy worldwide. In the progression of many intestinal diseases, early diagnosis and intervention are valuable. Fortunately, the emergence of sensor materials can effectively assist clinical early diagnosis and health monitoring. By accurately locating the lesion and sensitively analyzing the level of disease markers, these sensor materials can help to precisely diagnose the stage and state of lesions, thereby avoiding delaying the treatment. In this review, we provide a comprehensive and in-depth knowledge into diagnosing and monitoring intestinal diseases with the assistance of sensor materials, particularly emphasizing the design and application of them in bioimaging and biodetection. This review is dedicated to conveying the practical applications of sensor materials in the intestine, a critical analysis of their mechanisms and applications, and discussion of their future roles in medicine. We believe that this review would promote the multidisciplinary communication between material science, medicine, and the relevant engineering fields, thus improving the clinical translation of sensor materials

Native and Engineered Probiotics: Promising Agents against Related Systemic and Intestinal Diseases

Intestinal homeostasis is a dynamic balance involving the interaction between the host intestinal mucosa, immune barrier, intestinal microecology, nutrients, and metabolites. Once homeostasis is out of balance, it will increase the risk of intestinal diseases and is also closely associated with some systemic diseases. Probiotics (Escherichia coli Nissle 1917, Akkermansia muciniphila, Clostridium butyricum, lactic acid bacteria and Bifidobacterium spp.), maintaining the gut homeostasis through direct interaction with the intestine, can also exist as a specific agent to prevent, alleviate, or cure intestinal-related diseases. With genetic engineering technology advancing, probiotics can also show targeted therapeutic properties. The aims of this review are to summarize the roles of potential native and engineered probiotics in oncology, inflammatory bowel disease, and obesity, discussing the therapeutic applications of these probiotics.

Role of Vitamin K in Intestinal Health

Intestinal diseases, such as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) and colorectal cancer (CRC) generally characterized by clinical symptoms, including malabsorption, intestinal dysfunction, injury, and microbiome imbalance, as well as certain secondary intestinal disease complications, continue to be serious public health problems worldwide. The role of vitamin K (VK) on intestinal health has drawn growing interest in recent years. In addition to its role in blood coagulation and bone health, several investigations continue to explore the role of VK as an emerging novel biological compound with the potential function of improving intestinal health. This study aims to present a thorough review on the bacterial sources, intestinal absorption, uptake of VK, and VK deficiency in patients with intestinal diseases, with emphasis on the effect of VK supplementation on immunity, anti-inflammation, intestinal microbes and its metabolites, antioxidation, and coagulation, and promoting epithelial development. Besides, VK-dependent proteins (VKDPs) are another crucial mechanism for VK to exert a gastroprotection role for their functions of anti-inflammation, immunomodulation, and anti-tumorigenesis. In summary, published studies preliminarily show that VK presents a beneficial effect on intestinal health and may be used as a therapeutic drug to prevent/treat intestinal diseases, but the specific mechanism of VK in intestinal health has yet to be elucidated.

Detection of Marker Associated with CTC in Colorectal Cancer in Mononuclear Cells of Patients with Benign Inflammatory Intestinal Diseases

Colorectal carcinoma (CRC) belongs to the most common tumor entities in western countries. Circulating tumor cells (CTC) in blood of CRC patients are a powerful prognostic and predictive biomarker. However, whether CTC-associated markers can also be used for early CRC detection and discrimination from benign diseases is not known. This study investigated the presence of CTC-associated markers CK20, PLS3, LAD1, and DEFA5 in blood of patients with benign inflammatory intestinal disease (IID) and their correlation with malignancy. The detection rate of CK20 and DEFA5 significantly differed between diseased patients and healthy controls. LAD1 and PLS3 were detected in all samples with clear differences in gene expression. DEFA5 expression was higher in CRC and IID patients compared to healthy donors, while CK20 and PLS3 were lower in CRC compared to IID patients or healthy controls. Overall, all CTC-associated markers were detectable in blood of IID patients, but not correlating with inflammation severity. Finally, PLS3 emerged as a suitable marker for differentiation between malignant and non-malignant intestinal diseases or healthy controls, however its suitability for early CRC detection needs to be further validated.

Pediococcus pentosaceus IM96 Exerts Protective Effects against Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7 Infection In Vivo

Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) is a notorious and prevalent foodborne pathogen which can cause serious intestinal diseases. The antagonistic activity of probiotics against EHEC is promising, but most of the studies concerning this subject have been carried out in vitro. Specifically, the interaction between Pediococcus pentosaceus and EHEC O157:H7 in vivo has not been reported yet. In this study, we investigated the protective effect of P. pentosaceus IM96 on EHEC O157:H7-infected female mice in vivo. The results demonstrated that P. pentosaceus IM96 reduced the level of pro-inflammatory factors and increased the level of anti-inflammatory factors of EHEC O157:H7-infected mice. Furthermore, P. pentosaceus IM96 alleviated intestinal mucosal damage and increased the level of MUC-2, tight junction (TJ) proteins, and short chain fatty acids (SCFAs). The intestinal microbial community structure and the diversity and richness of the microbiota were also changed by P. pentosaceus IM96 treatment. In summary, P. pentosaceus IM96 exerted protective effects against EHEC O157:H7 via alleviating intestinal inflammation, strengthening the intestinal barrier function, and regulating intestinal microbiota, suggesting that P. pentosaceus IM96 might serve as a potential microbial agent to prevent and treat intestinal diseases caused by EHEC O157:H7 infection in the future.

The Role of lncRNAs in Regulating the Intestinal Mucosal Mechanical Barrier

lncRNA is a transcript that is more than 200 bp in length. Currently, evidence has shown that lncRNA is of great significance in cell activity, involved in epigenetics, gene transcription, chromatin regulation, etc. The existence of an intestinal mucosal mechanical barrier hinders the invasion of pathogenic bacteria and toxins, maintaining the stability of the intestinal environment. Serious destruction or dysfunction of the mechanical barrier often leads to intestinal diseases. This review first summarizes the ability of lncRNAs to regulate the intestinal mucosal mechanical barrier. We then discussed how lncRNAs participate in various intestinal diseases by regulating the intestinal mucosal mechanical barrier. Finally, we envision its potential as a new marker for diagnosing and treating intestinal inflammatory diseases.

GPR35 in Intestinal Diseases: From Risk Gene to Function

Diet and gut microbial metabolites mediate host immune responses and are central to the maintenance of intestinal health. The metabolite-sensing G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) bind metabolites and trigger signals that are important for the host cell function, survival, proliferation and expansion. On the contrary, inadequate signaling of these metabolite-sensing GPCRs most likely participate to the development of diseases including inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). In the intestine, metabolite-sensing GPCRs are highly expressed by epithelial cells and by specific subsets of immune cells. Such receptors provide an important link between immune system, gut microbiota and metabolic system. Member of these receptors, GPR35, a class A rhodopsin-like GPCR, has been shown to be activated by the metabolites tryptophan-derived kynurenic acid (KYNA), the chemokine CXCL17 and phospholipid derivate lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) species. There have been studies on GPR35 in the context of intestinal diseases since its identification as a risk gene for IBD. In this review, we discuss the pharmacology of GPR35 including its proposed endogenous and synthetic ligands as well as its antagonists. We elaborate on the risk variants of GPR35 implicated in gut-related diseases and the mechanisms by which GPR35 contribute to intestinal homeostasis.