|
|
The Effect of Stress on the Pathology of Idiopathic Inflammatory Bowel Disease.
Zacharová, Bianka ; Vodička, Martin (advisor) ; Petr Hermanová, Petra (referee)
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), consisting of Crohn's Disease and ulcerative colitis are chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. The incidence of IBD is rapidly rising, most notably in recently industrialized countries. One of the factors contributing to the pathophysiology of these diseases, although often overlooked, is psychological stress. Stress can induce relapses and it can exacerbate IBD through multiple mechanisms affecting the nervous, endocrine, and immune systems. This then results in low-grade inflammation, impaired intestinal epithelial barrier function, and dysbiosis. From the immunological perspective, stress causes mast cell degranulation and shifts in macrophage and T cell differentiation. Both animal models and humans with IBD have significantly altered microbial profiles in their gut, which can be further worsened after undergoing stress. Knowing that brain-gut interactions are bidirectional, IBD is often comorbid with neuropsychiatric disorders, most commonly with depression and anxiety. This phenomenon was observed not only in cohort studies but also in murine models, where colitis is often associated with depressive-like behavior. While the exact mechanism causing the development of these comorbidities is unknown, multiple factors are speculated to play an important...
|
guest ::
