Abstract
Intestinal inflammatory bowel diseases, such as Chrohn's disease and colitis, often lead to colon cancer and are dependent on the interplay between the mucosal immune system and intestinal bacteria. The cytokine macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is secreted by several cell types in response to the bacterial product lipopolysaccharide. New evidence from researchers at Harvard University, USA shows that MIF plays an essential role in the pathogenesis of murine colitis, which mimics Crohn's disease in humans. Animals defective for MIF production failed to develop the disease. Administration of antibodies that block the action of MIF led to the suppression of inflammation and the disappearance of infiltrating lymphocytes in established colitic lesions. Also, the group found increased plasma concentrations of MIF in patients with Chrohn's disease. Therefore, therapies directed at reducing the concentration of MIF might be useful for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease and its long-term complication, colon cancer. Nat. Immunol. (2001) 10, 1061–1065 SW
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