| [ Summary ] |
Ulcerative colitis is a chronic disease of the large intestine in which the inflammation is usually limited to the mucosal and submucosal layer. The etiology of this disease is still unknown, although patients have been reported to have dysregulation of the immune system and a hereditary predisposition. Progress in molecular biological techniques has facilitated clarification of the etiology of ulcerative colitis. One of the topics of such studles is molecular genetic analyses using linkage analysis. In the near future, the candidate gene of inflammatory bowel disease is anticipated to be identified through this technique. Another achievement is the successful establishment of murine colitis models by gene targeting. The murine models suggests that immunological abnormalities, such as aberrant regulation of cytokines, adhesion molecules and signal transduction can induce the chronlc inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract. |