Authors: Romero C, Hamdi A, Valentine JF, Naser SA.

Institution: Department of Molecular Biology and Microbiology and Biomolecular Science Center, The Burnett College of Biomedical Sciences, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida 32816, USA.

Summary: Crohn's disease (CD) is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) with tissue granuloma and histopathological alteration that resembles aspects in tuberculosis, leprosy, and paratuberculosis.

In non-IBD subjects, MAP DNA was detected in the tissue of only 1 of 6 patients (17%) by PCR and 0 of 6 patients (0%) by FISH. MAP DNA was identified by PCR in inflamed tissue from 2 of 2 patients with ulcerative colitis. The detection of MAP DNA by either technique in tissue from subjects with CD is significant compared with non-IBD subjects (P < 0.005).

Identification of MAP DNA in both inflamed and noninflamed tissue by both techniques suggests that MAP infection in patients with CD may be systemic. The data add more evidence toward a possible association of MAP in the pathogenesis of CD.

Study link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15677904&query_hl=13

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• Culture of Mycobacterium Avium Subspecies Paratuberculosis from the Blood of Patients with Crohn's Disease
• High Prevalence of Mycobacterium Avium subspecies Paratuberculosis IS900 DNA in Gut Tissues from Individuals with Crohn's Disease
• Evaluation of Surgical Tissue from Patients with Crohn's Disease for the Presence of Mycobacterium Avium subspecies Paratuberculosis DNA by in situ Hybridization and Nested Polymerase Chain Reaction