Study: Mutation causes Crohn's disease

LA JOLLA, Calif., Feb. 12 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists from the Scripps Research Institute say they've linked a mouse gene mutation to an increased risk of inflammatory bowel disease.

The researchers said the link to the illness -- represented in humans as Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis -- might lead to new and better treatments for the disease.

The scientists said humans have a gene that is very similar to the mouse gene, called Mbtps1, and in certain rare instances, mutations of that gene may contribute to IBD in humans.

"We are just beginning to get a sense of the complexity of inflammatory bowel disease as far as humans are concerned," said Dr. Bruce Beutler, chairman of the Scripps Research Department of Genetics, who led the project.

The study appears in the online early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.