Background: Complete colonic duplication is a very rare congenital anomaly that may have different presentations according to its location and size. Complete colonic duplication can occur in 15% of gastrointestinal duplication. We report two cases of complete colonic duplications, and their characteristics. Case Presentation: We present two patients with complete colonic duplication with differ...

Metabolic syndrome (Mets), including diabetes and hypertension, increases the risk of colorectal cancer via the induction of chronic inflammation, acceleration of oxidative stress, and activation of the renin-angiotensin system. The present study examined the possible inhibitory effects of captopril, an angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor and antihypertensive drug, on the development ...

Caveolae are specialized regions of the plasma membrane that concentrate receptors and associated signaling molecules critical in regulation of cellular response to transmitters and hormones. We have determined the effects of caveolin-1 (Cav-1) deletion, caveolin-1 siRNA, and caveolar disruption in mice on the signaling pathways that mediate contraction and relaxation in colonic smooth muscle a...

The most well known food-based strategies to modulate the composition of the intestinal microbiota are the dietary use of prebiotics, probiotics and their combination, synbiotics. Currently established prebiotic compounds are mainly targeting the bifidobacteria population of the colon microbiota. A good illustration of the importance of high colonic bifidobacteria levels is the observation that...

Yoo J, Chung C, Slice L, Sinnett-Smith J, Rozengurt E. Protein kinase D mediates synergistic expression of COX-2 induced by TNFand bradykinin in human colonic myofibroblasts. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol 297: C1576–C1587, 2009. First published September 30, 2009; doi:10.1152/ajpcell.00184.2009.—Myofibroblasts have recently been identified as major mediators of tumor necrosis factor(TNF)-associated...

Metronidazole (MTDZ), the drug of choice for the treatment of protozoal infections such as luminal amebiasis, is highly susceptible to colonic metabolism, which may hinder its conversion from a colon-specific prodrug to an effective anti-amebic agent targeting the entire large intestine. Thus, in an attempt to control the colonic distribution of the drug, a polymeric colon-specific prodrug, MTD...

Esophageal, gastrointestinal, and colonic diseases resulting from disorders of the motor and sensory functions represent almost half the patients presenting to gastroenterologists. There have been significant advances in understanding the mechanisms of these disorders, through basic and translational research, and in targeting the receptors or mediators involved, through clinical trials involvi...

PURPOSE The present investigation is to study the influence of metronidazole and tinidazole on the usefulness of guar gum, a colon-specific drug carrier based on the metabolic activity of colonic bacteria, using matrix tablets of albendazole (containing 20% of guar gum) as a model formulation. METHODS The matrix tablets of albendazole were subjected to in vitro drug release studies in simulat...

The secretion of Cl(-) across distal colonic crypt cells provides the driving force for the movement of fluid into the luminal space. 17beta-Estradiol (E2) produces a rapid and sustained reduction in secretion in females, which is dependent on the novel protein kinase C delta (PKC delta) isozyme and PKA isoform I targeting of KCNQ1 channels. This sexual dimorphism in the E2 response is associat...

The corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) signaling systems encompass CRF and the structurally related peptide urocortin (Ucn) 1, 2, and 3 along with 2 G-protein coupled receptors, CRF₁ and CRF₂. CRF binds with high and moderate affinity to CRF₁ and CRF₂ receptors, respectively while Ucn1 is a high-affinity agonist at both receptors, and Ucn2 and Ucn3 are selective CRF₂ agonists. The CRF systems...