Healthy First-Degree Relatives From Multiplex Families vs Simplex Families Have Higher Subclinical Intestinal Inflammation, a Distinct Fecal Microbial Signature, and Harbor a Higher Risk of Developing Crohn’s Disease
The GEM team looked to understand differences in Crohn’s disease (CD) risk between individuals with one first-degree relative of CD (simplex family), compared to those with more than one first-degree relative of CD (multiplex family). Compared to simplex individuals, participants from multiplex families were associated with changes in the gut microbiome, higher levels of the gut inflammatory marker fecal calprotectin, and had an overall greater risk of developing Crohn’s disease independent of differences in genetics or gut barrier permeability.
Olivera PA, Martinez-Lozano H, Leibovitzh H, Xue M, Neustaeter A, Espin-Garcia O, Xu W, Madsen KL, Guttman DS, Bernstein CN, Yerushalmi B, Hyams JS,Abreu MT, Marshall JK, Wrobel I, Mack DR, Jacobson K, Bitton A, Aumais G,Panacionne R, Dieleman LA, Silverberg MS, Steinhart AH, Moayyedi P, Turner D,Griffiths AM, Turpin W, Lee SH, Croitoru K; Crohn’s and Colitis Canada (CCC)Genetic, Environmental, Microbial (GEM) Project Research Consortium. Healthy First-Degree Relatives From Multiplex Families vs Simplex Families Have Higher Subclinical Intestinal Inflammation, a Distinct Fecal Microbial Signature, and Harbor a Higher Risk of Developing Crohn's Disease. 2025 Jan;168(1):99-110.e2. doi.org/10.1053/j.gastro.2024.08.031. Epub 2024 Sep 3. PMID:39236898.