Intestinal epithelial Smad7 drives purine metabolic dysregulation and ileal inflammation - PubMed
2 days ago
- #purine metabolism
- #IBD
- #Smad7
- Elevated Smad7 levels in intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) are linked to inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD).
- Smad7TgCre+ mice developed spontaneous terminal ileitis, showing villus shortening, mucus depletion, and increased permeability.
- Altered purine metabolism, particularly reduced CD73 enzyme activity, was observed in Smad7TgCre+ mice, leading to lower adenosine production.
- Oral adenosine administration restored mucus production and alleviated ileal pathology in Smad7TgCre+ mice.
- In Crohn's disease (CD) patients, elevated Smad7 correlated with decreased CD73 expression in the inflamed ileum.
- The study suggests Smad7 overexpression in IECs promotes ileal mucosal damage via impaired purine metabolism.