The immuno-inflammatory reaction in Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis: characterisation, genetics and clinical application. Focus on TNF alpha.

Inflammatory bowel diseases are multifactorial polygenic diseases. The author has worked on the characterisation of the mucosal immuno-inflammatory reaction, on genetic predisposition and on potential clinical application of blood immuno-inflammatory markers in these diseases. This paper summarizes some aspects of this work, focusing on TNF. Following points are developed: production of TNF by inflamed mucosa, genetic control of TNF production, TNF gene polymorphim in inflammatory bowel disease, and evaluation of serum TNF as a marker of disease activity or evolutivity.