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Activin
A: A Novel Player and Inflammatory Marker in Inflammatory Bowel Disease? |
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Griseldis HAdubner,
Maria Brauchle, Michael Gregor, and Sabine Werner |
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Max-Planck-Institut
fAdur Biochemie (GH, MB, SW), Martinsried, and Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik
(MG), UniversitAdat TAdubingen, TAdubingen, Germany |
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Recently, we demonstrated
a strong induction of activin expression after cutaneous injury. We speculated,
therefore, that activin may be overexpressed during inflammatory processes
in other tissues characterized by mesenchymal/epithelial structure. Herein,
we show a strikingly increased expression of the activin betaA-subunit in
surgical specimens from the gut of patients suffering from ulcerative colitis
and Crohn's disease, whereas no activin betaA mRNA could be detected in
the normal human digestive tract. The levels of activin betaA expression
showed an outstanding correlation with the degree of inflammation as assessed
by histologic analysis of adjacent tissue and expression analysis of the
proinflammatory cytokine interleukin-1beta. In situ hybridization studies
revealed the highest levels of activin mRNA in the mucosa and submucosa
of highly inflamed areas, particularly where the intestinal epithelium was
damaged, but not in control tissue. In contrast, activin betaB mRNA levels
in most specimens from inflamed areas were only slightly higher compared
to control tissue. The strong overexpression of activin betaA in inflammatory
bowel disease suggests a novel and important role of this growth and differentiation
factor during inflammatory processes of the gut. |
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