Two tranregios at FAU have had their funding extended: the collaborative research center/transregio 154 "Mathematical modeling, simulation and optimization using the example of gas networks" is entering into its third funding period, whilst the CRC/transregio 241 "Immune-epithelial communication in inflammatory bowel diseases" has had its funding extended for the first time.
Inflammatory bowel disease
Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD, Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis) are characterized by a destructive and progressive inflammation of the intestinal lining. There is still no cure, but the number of people affected by the disease is on the rise. In order to be able to develop new treatments, doctors and researchers must first gain a better understanding of what triggers the disease. This is the objective behind transregio 241 "Immune-epithelial communication in inflammatory bowel diseases".
In the first funding period, researchers were able to show that intestinal flora, the intestinal barrier and immune cells in the intestines form a regulatory circuit, and that any malfunctions in the system can have a major effect on IBD. In addition, they also developed innovative approaches for treating and diagnosing the disease in order to pinpoint and correct any malfunctions causing symptoms in patients. These approaches are currently undergoing clinical trials.
Molecular and cellular factors have already been identified, and during the next funding period the researchers aim to use model systems to explore their significance in triggering IBD. By influencing each of these factors, the team will explore how these new findings can be incorporated into treatments. Any promising experimental approaches will be carried over into further clinical studies.
