Literature Reviews

Hypercoagulation after Hospital Discharge in Acute Severe Ulcerative Colitis: A Prospective Study Griffiths BH, Desborough MJR, Duijvestein M et al. Clin Gastro Hep 2024.

Multimodal profiling of peripheral blood identifies proliferating circulating effector CD4+ T cells as predictors for response to integrin α4β7-blocking therapy in inflammatory bowel disease Horn V, Cancino CA, Steinheuer LM, et al. Gastroenterology 2025;168:327–43.

Harms with placebo in trials of biological therapies and small molecules as maintenance therapy in inflammatory bowel disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis Gros B, Blackwell J, Segal J, et al. Lancet Gastroenterol Hepatol 2024;9:1030–40.

Risankizumab versus ustekinumab for moderate-to-severe Crohn’s disease Peyrin-Biroulet L, Chapman JC, Colombel JF, et al. N Engl J Med 2024;391:213–23.

Vedolizumab to prevent postoperative recurrence of Crohn’s disease (REPREVIO): a multicentre, double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial D'Haens G, Taxonera C, Lopez-Sanroman A, et al. Lancet Gastroenterol Hepatol 2025;10:26–33; DOI: 10.1016/S2468-1253(24)00317-0

A disease-associated gene desert directs macrophage inflammation through ETS2 Stankey CT, Bourges C, Haag LM et al. Nature 2024;630:447–56.

Iacucci and colleagues explored the application of machine learning in diagnosing histological remission and predicting clinical outcomes in UC patients.

Wijnands and colleagues sought to develop and validate a dynamic prediction model for advanced colorectal neoplasia (aCRN), including high-grade dysplasia and CRC, in IBD patients.

Lindsay and colleagues sought to conduct the ASTIClite trial, to investigate the safety and efficacy of HSCT with a reduced intensity (potentially safer) conditioning regimen and a more traditional (and potentially more achievable) primary endpoint.

Combination therapy with anti-TNF inhibitors (ATI) and immunomodulator (IMM) therapy remains an efficacious treatment strategy for disease control in moderate to severe Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). This conclusion was largely based on the findings of landmark trials, SONIC and UC SUCCESS, which showed combination therapy to be far superior to monotherapy in achieving durable clinical and endoscopic remission in IBD [1, 2]...

The gut microbiota of patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) may have a role in disease aetiology and course [1]. Patients with IBD often have dysbiotic microbiota, with lower microbial diversity and cell counts, with both absolute and relative abundance of commensal microorganisms [2, 3]. Conversely, during remission following anti-inflammatory therapy, the gut microbiota has been observed to shift to a more eubiosis-like composition [3–6]. Furthermore, lower proportions of taxa with pro-inflammatory properties and mucus-degrading bacteria, as well as higher proportions of short-chain

Adalimumab is an effective and safe treatment for Crohn’s Disease (CD). However, both patients and healthcare professionals may wish to mitigate medication exposure due to potential safety and economic concerns in the long term. Since a high relapse rate follows drug discontinuation, treatment de-escalation without actually stopping the medication may allow for decreasing drug exposure while maintaining efficacy. In two observational studies, de-escalation from a 2-week to a 3-week adalimumab dosing interval was successful in most of the patients, though reversal to a 2-week dosing interval...

The SONIC trial yielded seminal findings showing that the combination of infliximab and azathioprine is more effective than either treatment alone for the maintenance of remission in patients with Crohn’s Disease (CD) [1]. In recent years, despite the availability of an increasing number of biologics and small molecules to treat CD, a ceiling of therapeutic efficacy has been reached [2]. Therefore, there has been a resurgence of interest in whether this therapeutic ceiling “effect” can be overcome with new treatment combinations.

Despite an expanding therapeutic arsenal, a considerable proportion of patients with Crohn's Disease (CD) and Ulcerative Colitis (UC) fail to achieve or sustain therapeutic responses [1, 2]. Mechanisms contributing to this failure, particularly with respect to biologic therapy, are only partially understood [3]. Uncovering the mechanisms behind loss of response may help to enhance the efficacy of existing treatment options or to develop alternative options for the future.

Patients will often ask, “What causes Inflammatory Bowel Disease?” Frustratingly, we remain unable to answer this seemingly simple question, beyond the often-quoted paradigm that unknown environmental factors trigger inflammation in genetically susceptible individuals. Although our understanding of the immune response in IBD has reached phenomenally detailed levels of resolution, the nature and identity of the initial environmental triggers of IBD have continued to remain a mystery.

The management of Crohn’s Disease (CD) is dependent on many factors, including disease activity, site of involvement and the need to tailor treatment for each individual patient [1]. Moreover, features such as obstruction, fistulation, strictures and abscesses can all add to the complexity of CD management. While surgery has played a large role in the management of these patients, it is by no means a cure and the risk of relapse and repeat surgeries remains high [2, 3]. Accordingly, there continues to be a large unmet need for the development of novel medications that target distinct ...

Despite an increasing number of therapeutic options for Ulcerative Colitis (UC), many patients still have disease which progresses over time, and there has been renewed interest in and improved understanding of the chronic fibrosis and remodelling that occurs in UC [1–3]. In particular, there has been a growing appreciation of both the importance of the extracellular matrix (ECM) for remodelling in UC and the potential to target the ECM with new therapeutic agents [4]. One such target is carbohydrate sulphotransferase 15 (CHST15). This is a type II transmembrane Golgi protein that ...

Mucosal healing (MH) in both Crohn's Disease (CD) and Ulcerative Colitis (UC) has been recognised as an important treatment target for many years. Indeed, the 2021 update of the Selecting Therapeutic Targets (STRIDE) consensus reaffirmed MH as the top priority among long-term treatment objectives [1]. Nonetheless, it is important to note that endoscopic inflammation may not always mirror the histological picture. Histological healing is an emerging endpoint in IBD. This is particularly true in UC, in which it represents a deeper level of recovery with some early evidence for correlation ...

Filgotinib for the treatment of small bowel Crohn’s disease: The DIVERGENCE 1 Trial D’Haens GR, Lee S, Taylor SA, Serone A, Rimola J, Colombel JF; DIVERGENCE 1 Study Group. Gastroenterology 2023;165:289–92.e3. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2023.03.234.

Faecal microbiota transplantation with anti-inflammatory diet (FMT-AID) followed by anti-inflammatory diet alone is effective in inducing and maintaining remission over 1 year in mild to moderate ulcerative colitis: a randomised controlled trial Kedia S, Virmani S, Vuyyuru SK, et al. Gut 2022;71:2401–13. doi: 10.1136/gutjnl-2022-327811.