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How does fibrosis occur in Crohn’s disease?

How does fibrosis occur in Crohn’s disease?

New research has shown that a protein, known as IL-13, could be the key to the development of fibrosis in Crohn’s disease. This breakthrough could help to advance new medicines to treat people suffering with the disease.

Crohn’s disease is a chronic, debilitating condition characterised by inflammation and ulceration occurring at any point in the gastrointestinal tract. Currently there is no cure. One of the major complications of Crohn’s disease is the development of fibrosis – hardening and thickening – in the bowel wall. This causes the intestine to lose its mobility and it eventually becomes so narrow that food and faeces are unable to pass.
Fibrosis occurs when there is an overproduction of the proteins which are normally involved in the tissue healing process, including collagens.

The research team, led by the School of Veterinary Sciences at the University of Bristol, found an increase in collagen synthesis and a lack of control of collagen deposition in fibrotic intestine taken from Crohn’s disease patients when compared to normal intestine. The researchers believe that this is related to an increase in a soluble mediator, interleukin 13 (IL-13), previously identified as promoting fibrosis in the lung, liver and kidney.

Increased levels of IL-13 were found in fibrotic Crohn’s gut when compared to normal gut, and tissue culture experiments showed that IL-13 reduced factors necessary to prevent inappropriate collagen deposition.

Dr Jenny Bailey, a researcher in the School of Veterinary Sciences at the University of Bristol, said: “We have identified a novel population of IL-13-producing cells which, in intestinal samples, were found at very high levels in fibrotic muscle. We believe these cells are key to the development of fibrosis.

“Understanding how fibrosis occurs will help us to develop new medicines to treat patients.”

Since many patients developing fibrosis will require surgery, early intervention strategies may prevent severe morbidity, to which end IL-13 and IL-13-producing cells provide a promising therapeutic target.

Although there is some success in treating the inflammation in Crohn’s disease, there are no current effective drugs to treat fibrosis. In cases of severe fibrosis, the only remedy is surgical excision of the strictured gut and around 30 per cent of Crohn’s disease sufferers will undergo surgery at least once. Unfortunately, removal of the fibrotic tissue does not prevent fibrosis recurring in another part of the intestine and Crohn’s patients frequently have to endure repeated surgery, eventually resulting in a short bowel which is no longer able to sustain adequate function.

The study, published in PLoS ONE, was carried out in the laboratories of Dr John Tarlton and Dr Christine Whiting at the University of Bristol’s School of Veterinary Sciences, in collaboration with Dr Paul Bland at the University of Gothenburg and Professor Chris Probert at the University of Liverpool. Work to further explore these important findings is on-going.

http://www.bris.ac.uk/news/2013/9095.html
 

kiny

Well-known member
They need localised cell renewal, local apoptosis to reduce the collagen, and regulation of TGF beta 1, in a safe manner, not mess with ridiculous ideas like using interleukin-blockers of which they have no idea what it does.

You can't just put people on interleukin-blockers just for the chance of someone getting fibrosis at some point in the future, why do they say stuff like that.

I hope they keep researching into fibrosis, because it's really sad there is so little research about fibrosis, but I really don't think the research should be targeted at prevention, you can not prevent it from happening, and even if you could no one is going to agree to be put on dangerous drugs just for the chance of not developing fibrosis, you need a way to reverse the collagen accumulation after the event through cell renewal and degrade the collagen, in an as safe manner as possible. It should not be as hard to reverse fibrosis in a readily accesible organ like the intestine instead of the lungs, there has to be a way to break down the collagen content in a safe manner.
 
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New research has shown that a protein, known as IL-13, could be the key to the development of fibrosis in Crohn’s disease. ... – hardening and thickening – in the bowel wall.

http://www.bris.ac.uk/news/2013/9095.html
Here is a connection to your post and what David posted earlier. David posted that excess serotonin is present in Crohn's, and in particular, the ratio of serotonin to dopamine may be off.

The IL-13 increases the production of 5-HTP, which the body then converts into serotonin. Excess serotonin, especially if it isn't handled correctly, can increase free serotonin (not contained within cells), which then causes fibrosis.

Raymond Peat, Ph.D. suggests that magnesium, niacinamide, taurine, glycine, saturated fats, thyroid hormone, antihistamines, antioxidants and other anti-inflammatory agents can help to reduce or reverse fibrogenic processes.

The free serotonin also interferes with cellular energy production, and probably has a lot to do with low thyroid and poor sleep.

=====================
reference

Mucosal Immunol. 2013 Jan;6(1):146-55. doi: 10.1038/mi.2012.58. Epub 2012 Jul 4. IL-13-mediated immunological control of enterochromaffin cell hyperplasia and serotonin production in the gut.
Manocha M, Shajib MS, Rahman MM, Wang H, Rengasamy P, Bogunovic M, Jordana M, Mayer L, Khan WI.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22763407
 
Here is a possible reason for the increased IL-13 in the diseased fibrotic patches of Crohn's. It is Epstein Barr. The Epstein Barr virus increases IL-13 production. Epstein Barr often shows up in the diseased intestinal areas of people with Crohn's, but not in the healthy parts of the intestines.

Why is the Epstein Barr virus localized to these diseased patches in the intestines? I suspect it might have something to do with Epstein Barr being able to replicate within yeast/fungal cells. Recent DNA testing shows an increased fungal load in the intestines of those with Crohn's and colitis. The yeast in its fungal form is embedded into the tissue. Perhaps it carries the Epstein Barr virus along with it into the tissue.

To me, it looks like people will have to get rid of both yeast and viruses at the same time in order to heal.

=========================
reference.

EBV Zta protein induces the expression of interleukin-13, promoting the proliferation of EBV-infected B cellsa nd lymphoblastoid cell lines

2009 114: 109-118
Chen and Ching-Hwa Tsai
Shu-Chun Tsai, Sue-Jane Lin, Po-Wen Chen, Wen-Yi Luo, Te-Huei Yeh, Hsei-Wei Wang, Chi-Ju
 
Hi David,

I didn’t answer immediately because I wanted a chance to think about it. I’m relatively new to the subject of Crohn’s and colitis, so please let me know if I’ve suggested something here that is not good for these conditions. In my opinion, it isn’t as simple as taking things that kill bad bacteria, yeast and viruses. However, using things to kill them is definitely a place to start.

Some of the things that help kill yeast, viruses, MAP, and E. coli would be Lauricidin, MSM sulfur, oregano, olive leaf extract and selenium. When employing things to kill pathogens, you always start with just a little and slowly build up to using more, else you could make yourself sick.

Lauricidin. Crohn’s and colitis are associated with the Epstein Barr Virus, the Cytomegalovirus, and a Herpes virus called HHV-6. The lauracidin is a form of a saturated fatty acid that kills yeast, Epstein Barr and Cytomegalovirus (CMV). It kills many of the herpes viruses, but has not been shown specifically to kill the HHV-6 form. (These are invitro not invivo results.)

Olive Leaf Extract. Olive leaf extract will kill HHV-6 as well as CMV. (These are invitro not invivo results.) You want your olive leaf extract fresh. If you have an olive tree in your yard, make yourself some olive leaf tea.

MSM sulfur This helps kill yeast, viruses and parasites. Sometimes it is not tolerated if mercury levels are high. Try sulfates instead if mercury is high. (Eg, glucosamine sulfate or chondroitan sulfate)

Selenium. This is antiviral. It is lost due to certain viral infections. Mercury will also get rid of it. Low sulfur will also cause you to be deficient in selenium.

Oregano oil This helps get rid of E. coli and MAP bacteria, which appear to be offending bacterial agents in Crohn’s and colitis. (There are different kinds of oregano, plus brands make a difference. For oils, I happen to like Young Living essential oils.)

However, I strongly doubt that these will help you if you continue with lots of polyunsaturated oils in your diet. You will have to remove the offending oils. I think you also need to use things to build up the body’s ability to deal with these pathogens, and to help the body reduce the fibrin formation. Diet is a big part of this, but supplements can help, too.

Once you have things somewhat under control, then perhaps you can specifically address removing some of the scar tissue. There are enzymes that help you break down fibrin and scar tissue. However, realize that when you break down the fibrin, you release chemicals that cause inflammation. You may also uncover more of the offending infection. Therefore, I would wait on the introduction of the fibrin removing enzymes, or at least not use very much of them at first.

These enzymes will help break down fibrin: Serrapeptase, Vitalzyme, nattokinase, lumbrokinase and Rechtsregulat . They may also be of some use in controlling viruses. Since your body needs to be able to form fibrin to stop bleeding, you may need to be careful in how much you use of any of these enzymes. (The effectiveness of the lumbrokinase may be compromised if you take the other enzymes with it. So use it separately from the other enzymes. However, using the lubrokinase along with heparin shouldn't pose a problem. Your practitioner would just have to be very careful in monitoring your coagulation time.)

Another strategy is using a combination of vitamin E and emu oil. This has been shown to help remove scars after surgery and thus I suspect it may be helpful in reducing the fibrin in the intestines. You want an emu oil from a place like LongView Farms that processes the oil at low temperatures. It is more anti-inflammatory when processed at a low temperature. Unfortunately, you may have to eat a lot of the emu oil in order to help the intestines. It is available in quarts.

I’m going to list a lot of supplements next. These are ones that I suspect might be helpful. (You don’t have to use all of these and definitely not all of these at the same time.) I spoke about most of these particular supplements in the Yeast / fungus connection thread earlier. In that thread, there is more information about many of these supplements. What is perhaps instructive here is the new organization. I’ve grouped the supplements according to their properties.

To kill the infections: Lauricidin, MSM sulfur, oregano, olive leaf extract and selenium

Inflammation control: Probiotics, and vitamins A, D, E, and K2. Benfotiamine (a form of vitamin B1) is also anti-inflammatory. Niacinamide reduces inflammation due to the gram negative bacteria’s lipopolysaccharides (LPS). Emu oil is anti-inflammatory. Emu oil that has not been processed at high temperatures is more anti-inflammatory. (Brands like LongView Farms) Natural progesterone is anti-inflammatory.

Adrenal support. This can be dried adrenal, pantethine, natural progesterone, taurine, B vitamins, vitamin C, licorice, adrenal cortical extract, and / or pregnenolone. (You may have other organs that need support too.)

Liver support: Eat liver once in a while. Thyroid supports the liver. Milk thistle is sometimes tolerated. Pantethine helps get rid of fatty liver. Be careful with lipoic acid. Although lipoic acid is wonderful for the liver, you need B12, B1 and other B vitamins while using it. Also, lipoic acid might not be tolerated if yeast levels are too high, or if mercury is too high, or copper is too high.

Antihistamines: Vitamin C and whatever your doctor prescribes for this.

Antioxidants: A, C, E, K2, Q10 / ubiquinol, selenium, molybdenum and bioflavonoids like carotene. Careful with the amount of the bioflavonoids though. Too much bioflavonoids interfere with your ability to detoxify.

Reduce fibrin formation: Raymond Peat, Ph.D. suggests that magnesium, niacinamide, taurine, glycine, saturated fats, thyroid hormone, antihistamines, antioxidants and other anti-inflammatory agents can help to reduce or reverse fibrogenic processes.

Replace nutrients lost because of the yeast: CoQ10 or ubiquinol, taurine, Pyridoxal-5-Phosphate (P5P), vitamin B1 (I like benfotiamine), methyl-folate, CoA, asparagine or malate, alpha ketoglutaric acid and glutamine. The last two may cause constipation, so be careful with those. Yeast can also lower your cholesterol. Low cholesterol is associated with a flare of Crohn’s. Don’t let your cholesterol drop too low. It should not drop below 160 mg/dl. Coconut oil, fruit, and vitamin C can help bring up cholesterol levels. There are also pills of cholesterol you can purchase. You need the cholesterol to protect you from the toxins in your gut, and to protect you from staph, strep and tuberculosis infections. To increase CoA levels, you might want to use some pantethine.

Mineral balance: This was addressed in the previous thread on the yeast / fungus connection.

H. pylori and stomach acid: This was addressed in the previous thread on the yeast / fungus connection.

Toxin and heavy metal removal. Again, this was in the previous thread.

Biofilm removal. This was addressed in the previous thread on yeast / fungus connection.

Break down fibrin: These enzymes will help break down fibrin: Serrapeptase, Vitalzyme, nattokinase, lumbrokinase and Rechtsregulat . Use only the amount suggested, and definitely use with a doctor’s help if you are on anti-coagulants. These enzymes may also be of some use in controlling viruses. Another strategy for removing scar tissue is a combination of vitamin E and emu oil.

==============================
Here are some ideas about how to start experimenting with health supplements. These are just my opinion. I’m not a practitioner.

Read about a few supplements that seem promising.

If you decide to try one, start with less than the full dose. Stay at that dose for a couple of days before you try more.

A few days later, you can add in another supplement if you wish, possibly even one that balances the first.

Don’t introduce too many new supplements in a short period of time.

Continue the new supplements for a month and determine if you seem a bit better. If you feel better, purchase another bottle of each. (Many bottles contain a one month supply.)

After three months, stop the supplements for a week. At the end of the week, observe if you seem better, about the same or if you have slipped backwards.

If you felt better or about the same, then maybe you don’t need those supplements right now. It is time to try something new on your list.

If you wish to try something new, you might even try some of the supplements that were too strong for you before. Maybe you are strong enough for them now.
 
EBV, CMV, HHV-6 and Parvovirus are viruses associated with Crohn’s and colitis. These viruses can be found in the gut, even if they don’t show up in the blood. I just watched a very important video on the these particular viruses. However, in this video, Dr. Tent is talking about treating autoimmune diseases associated with these very same viruses. (It makes me wonder if he shouldn’t branch out into treating Crohn’s and colitis as well.) You can find his video by doing an internet search for Dr. Tent along with the title of the video, The Exploding Autoimmune Epidemic.

The first three of these viruses belong to the Herpes family of viruses. As many of you know, cold sores also belong to the Herpes family of viruses. To treat cold sores, you will often see recommendations to take lots of lysine and avoid arginine rich foods. Apparently, this lysine / arginine ratio rule also applies to people fighting the other herpes viruses of EBV, CMV and HHV-6. Dr. Tent has his patients taking lots of lysine each morning. (Lysine is a little bitter, but I tried a tablespoon in a large glass of water and found it tolerable.) Here is the list of arginine rich foods that he wants his patients to avoid:

Sunflower seeds, Brown Rice, Chocolate, Almonds, Pecans, Peanuts, whole wheat, oatmeal, soybeans, corn, millet, onions, Brussels, sesame seeds, split peas, walnuts, wheat germ, caffeine.

He is also a big believer in calcium. One of his slides reads:

Several top immunologists believe that the single most critical disease-fighting element in the human cell is ionized calcium.

When calcium is present, and when it is ionized properly by the body and distributed to the tissues, herpes has little chance to flare up.


Dr. Tent has his patients take Cal-Ma Plus by Standard Processes, 3 each day, taken at night time.

He also strongly suggests that his patients avoid radiation, such as x-rays and cat scans, as these will make it difficult for your body to control the viruses. He doesn’t particularly like anti-depressants and pain killers because these suppress the immune system as well. He isn’t a big fan of vaccines either. Manufacturers are unable to remove all the viruses from the vaccines. So, you are exposing yourself to more viruses every time you get a vaccination. Many of his patients become ill after either a bad reaction to one vaccine, or a short while after getting multiple vaccinations at the same time.

For general immune support, he has his patients taking:

IAG, 1 teaspoon in juice, to increase natural killer cells
Thymex, 3 per day to increase t cells
Sesame Seed oil 3 per day to increase B cells
Astragulus 2 per day for immune support
Vitanox (curcumin) 1-2 per day on empty stomach for immune support


Depending on which viruse(s) are present, and the particular patient, he also uses several of the following:

Livaplex
Livotrite Plus
Liv-Co
Livton
L-Lysine
Cal-ma Plus
C/Cal/Mag

Calcium Lactate
Bio-FCTS
Ultra Virex
Cyruta Plus
Andrographis
Dismuzyme
Garlic

Sesame seed oil
IAG
ADP
Thymex
Grapefruit Seed Extract
Congaplex

 
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