Identification of bacterial 'signatures'
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Identification of bacterial 'signatures' characteristic of intestinal disease
IRAS ID
143550
Contact name
Rachael Rigby
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Lancaster University
Duration of Study in the UK
3 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
The exact pathogenic mechanisms underlying inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) currently remain unclear however, there is an accumulating range of evidence which suggest that the intestinal microflora have a direct role in disease onset and pathogenesis. It is estimated that approximately 1000 different species of bacteria live within the colon and usually exist in symbiosis with the host. Alterations in the composition and abundance of the microflora are considered to underpin the development of mucosal inflammation, characteristic of IBD, but research has yet failed to identify a distinct opportunistic pathogen to be responsible for disease onset.
Novel proteomics based methodologies have recently been utilised to identify various bacterial metabolites, via analysis of urine, indicative of bacterial species within the intestine. Such techniques, termed ‘metabonomics’, will enable profiling of the composition and abundance of intestinal microflora.
This study aims to employ metabonomics to identify novel bacterial metabolite profiles in the urine which are characteristic of intestinal disease. We will correlate metabonomic data with genomic analysis of bacteria in colonic tissue biopsies, to establish whether the metabonomic profile differs between IBD and healthy controls. Such analyses could provide a novel, non-invasive, and inexpensive diagnostic technique for intestinal diseases.REC name
North West - Preston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/NW/1429
Date of REC Opinion
12 Dec 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion