Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is an ongoing or chronic health problem that causes inflammation and swelling in the digestive tract. The irritation causes bleeding sores called ulcers to form along the digestive tract. This in turn can cause crampy, abdominal pain and severe bloody diarrhea.

What is Ulcerative Colitis?

Ulcerative colitis is a chronic condition that affects the large intestines, particularly the colon. It is classified as one of the two inflammatory bowel diseases along with Crohn’s disease.

Short-Chain Fatty Acids (SCFAs)

Dysbiosis and the Microbiome

Ulcerative Colitis Causes

FODMAP Research

Mesentery: a new organ?

Genetics of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)

Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Colorectal Cancer

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) in Pregnancy

Latest Inflammatory Bowel Disease News and Research

New collaboration explores familial inflammatory bowel disease in Saudi Arabia

Mount Sinai and King Saud University Medical City in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, today announced a three-year collaboration aimed at better understanding why inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) runs in some Saudi families, and how that knowledge can lead to risk ascertainment, earlier diagnosis and more personalized treatment options.

3 Mar 2026

New research initiative aims to predict and prevent diseases before they start

What if doctors could tell you a disease was coming years before you felt a single symptom-and stop it in its tracks? That is the goal of a sweeping new research initiative launched by the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in collaboration with the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) and the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine (HJF).

2 Mar 2026

Forecasting disease intensity through genomic risk

Approximately 60,000 Danes live with chronic inflammatory bowel disease. Some experience limited discomfort, while others go through a debilitating disease course involving surgery and a stoma. Add to this the fear of leaving home due to urgent toilet needs.

2 Mar 2026

Tick-derived protein discovery can advance treatment for inflammatory diseases

When the immune system detects a harmful or foreign agent it triggers an inflammatory response small proteins called chemokines direct immune cells to the site of the injury or infection, resulting in the invader being inactivated.

27 Feb 2026

Routine terminal ileum intubation and biopsy: A standard practice for colonoscopy completion

Terminal ileum intubation is considered the completion step of colonoscopy and is usually performed to assess the ileum.

27 Feb 2026

Distinct gut toxicity patterns emerge with targeted cancer treatments

A new paper was published in Volume 13 of Oncoscience on February 6, 2026, titled "Gastrointestinal toxicity of targeted cancer therapies in the United States: Clinicopathologic patterns, FDA safety frameworks, and implications for national patient protection."

20 Feb 2026

Blood markers can indicate people at risk of developing ulcerative colitis

Researchers at örebro University have identified blood markers that can indicate who is at risk of developing ulcerative colitis - a chronic inflammatory bowel disease - later in life.

20 Feb 2026

Developmental ANGPTL4 deficiency protects mice from colitis and tumors

A novel study using a mouse model has found that the absence of the angiopoietin-like 4 (ANGPTL4) protein during development triggers a long-lasting reprogramming of the immune system that protects against intestinal inflammation.

18 Feb 2026

AI tool can accurately predict colorectal cancer risk in UC-LGD patients

People with ulcerative colitis (UC), a chronic inflammatory bowel disease, are up to four times more likely to develop colorectal cancer than the general population.

17 Feb 2026

Dysplasia grade predicts colorectal cancer risk in people with IBD

People with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and precancerous colorectal lesions are much more likely to develop colorectal cancer, a new study shows.

16 Feb 2026

Stress hormones rewire immune system during periods of food scarcity

When food is scarce, stress hormones direct the immune system to operate in "low power" mode to preserve immune function while conserving energy, according to researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine.

10 Feb 2026

Time-restricted feeding reduces disease activity and inflammation in Crohn's patients

A new randomized controlled study funded by the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation found that time-restricted feeding-a form of intermittent fasting-significantly reduced symptomatic disease activity and systematic inflammation in adults with Crohn's disease and overweight or obesity.

9 Feb 2026

Ulcerative proctitis not linked to increased rectal cancer risk

People with ulcerative proctitis, a milder and more limited form of ulcerative colitis, are not at higher risk of developing rectal cancer than the general population.

5 Feb 2026

Why the carnivore diet’s claimed benefits don’t outweigh its health risks

Researchers determine the nutritional adequacy and health effects of the carnivore diet.

2 Feb 2026

Algae4IBD conference highlights seaweed-driven health innovations

Leading academics from universities and research organizations across Europe and America, and companies and SMEs interested in developing foods, supplements and pharmaceuticals targeting pain and inflammation will gather for the Algae4IBD Conference and Industry Summit, taking place at the Conference Center, Teagasc Food Research Center, Ashtown, Dublin 15 from March 4th-6th, 2026.

31 Jan 2026

Gut microbiome may be a central player in the body's response to cancer

A new study reveals how bacteria in the gut can help determine whether the amino acid asparagine from the diet will feed tumor growth or activate immune cells against the cancer, according to researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine.

29 Jan 2026

PTPN2 gene protects the gut from harmful bacteria driving inflammatory bowel disease

Two recent studies from the University of California, Riverside, published in the same issue of Gut Microbes highlight the role of a gene called PTPN2 in protecting the gut from harmful bacteria linked to inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

24 Jan 2026

Discovery explains why people with IBD have higher risk of colorectal cancer

A chain of immune reactions in the gut—driven by a key signaling protein and a surge of white blood cells from the bone marrow—may help explain why people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have a higher risk of colorectal cancer, according to a preclinical study by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators.

22 Jan 2026

New oral contrast agent improves bowel disease detection on CT scans

In a new pilot feasibility study, researchers from Mayo Clinic, the University of Washington School of Medicine, the University of California San Francisco, and Nextrast Inc. found that a new imaging oral agent, also known as a "contrast agent," helps radiologists better see bowel structures and disease in CT imaging when compared with the current oral contrast agents.

20 Jan 2026

Pregnant individuals with inflammatory bowel disease show heightened vaginal inflammation

Pregnant individuals with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have higher levels of pro-inflammatory immune molecules, known as cytokines, in their vaginal mucosa than their healthy counterparts, according to a new study published January 14, 2026 in the open-access journal PLOS One by Ana Maldonado-Contreras of University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, U.S., and colleagues.

14 Jan 2026