title: Apoptosis as a therapeutic paradigm in inflammatory bowel diseases.
abstract: Evidence is increasing that a defect in apoptosis is involved in the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), including Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). CD seems to be the cause of an intrinsic defect in the apoptotic pathway of (autoreactive) T cells, resulting in excessive T cell responses. In UC, an increased rate of apoptosis of epithelial cells is observed. In this review we will describe apoptotic mechanisms and their association to IBD. In addition, we will review how specific therapeutic approaches interact at different levels with the apoptotic pathway.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Experimental and Molecular Medicine, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. M.I.Verstege@amc.uva.nl
authors.forename: Marleen I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Verstege
authors.forename: Anje A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: te Velde
authors.forename: Daan W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Hommes
mesh_terms: D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology*; D002453:Cell Cycle / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007413:Intestinal Mucosa / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000502:physiology