MENLO PARK, Calif., Jan. 24, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Scientists from Enable Medicine, the infrastructure platform for biological data, published a new paper in Science Advances. The paper was co-authored by researchers from UC San Diego and Stanford, including Dr. Stephan Rogalla.
In the paper the researchers identified cellular signatures that indicate resistance to TNF inhibitor (TNFi) therapy, the front-line treatment for ulcerative colitis (UC).
Identification of patients who will respond to TNFi therapy remains an important challenge for researchers. While these therapies can be effective for some UC patients, up to 40% of UC patients do not respond to TNFis and TNFi therapy can increase the risk of infection and a variety of cancers. Nonresponse to TNFi therapy also results in unnecessary costs for patients. Combined direct and indirect costs caused by ulcerative colitis are estimated at $45 billion per year in the United States and Europe.
The paper identifies sex-related differences in the frequency of specific cellular signatures in untreated patients. Biological sex may impact response to TNFi therapies. Female patients presented higher concentrations of lymphoid cell signatures and this signature was eliminated in patients successfully treated. Recent work from other teams such as Gurtner et al. have supported the finding of the significance of granulocyte and lymphocyte interaction in colitis.
Ultimately, this study supports the importance of spatial profiling to enable precision medicine for those suffering from IBD and other autoimmune or inflammatory conditions.
Notably, this is the most comprehensive spatial atlas of ulcerative colitis released by researchers to date. The atlas has been published on the Enable Cloud Platform allowing for immediate exploration by any researcher interested in analyzing the data set further.
About Enable Medicine
Enable Medicine is the infrastructure platform for biological data. The Enable platform unlocks the ability to search biology, where complex questions about human disease can be asked and answered for the first time. Our network of partners at leading academic institutions and pharmaceutical companies around the world use the platform to guide novel drug target discovery, identify biomarkers of therapeutic response, and develop optimal treatment strategies.
To read the paper in full, please find it here. Additional research can be found here.
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SOURCE Enable Medicine
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