Relationship of Microbiome with Crohns Disease and the Immune System

Crohns Disease and the Immune System, and Microbiome Involvement
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Crohn's Disease and the Immune System and Microbiome Involvement The human gastrointestinal (GI) tract features a system of microorganisms, such as bacteria, viruses, protozoans, and fungi, which assist in diverse bodily functions and thus affect the overall health and well-being of an individual. The system of microorganisms in the human GI tract hosts approximately 100 trillion of the outlined microbial organisms. The number of microbial organisms in the human gut is 10 times more than the overall number of cells in an individual's body. These intestinal microbial organisms undergo changes with the growth and development of human beings by increasing phylogenetic diversity leading to a relatively stable and complex habitat of microorganisms at approximately the age of three years. The relatively stable and complex community of microorganisms further consists of over 1000 species of bacteria, with varied distribution and composition in the alimentary tract. Commonly referred to as the gut microbiota, the system, collection, or community of microorganisms in the alimentary tract assist in protecting the host against pathogens, harvesting energy from digested food, strengthening biochemical barriers of the gut and intestine, and regulating the immune function. Hence, the intestinal microbiota is integral to the physiology and overall health of the host (Zhang, 2017). Any imbalances between the host and the gut microbiota may have negative implications on the outlined bodily functions, exposing the host to diseases. Such imbalances may result from the altering of the diversity and composition of the intestinal microbiota, which would subsequently affect intestinal homeostasis. Disruption of intestinal homeostasis creates a dysfunction of the mutual relationship between the intestinal microbiota and the host leading to an excessive inflammatory response by the latter. The excessive inflammatory response exposes human beings to inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. It suffices, therefore, that the microbiome in humans' gastrointestinal tract plays a significant role in regulating the intestinal immune function against pathogenic attacks that create an excessive inflammatory response by the immune system and expose the host to Crohn's disease and other inflammatory bowel diseases. Provided herein is an investigation of the correlation between the microbiome and Crohn's disease, highlighting the role of intestinal microbiota and its interaction with the host's immune system in the pathogenesis of the chronic gastrointestinal disorder. Crohn's Disease Crohn's disease is one of the subtypes of inflammatory bowel disease that commonly appears as patched lesions in any part of the alimentary canal (Aldars-Garcia, 2021). Like ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease is characteristic of alternating phases of active and inactive states. The inactive state features no intestinal inflammation or any other known symptoms of the disease, while the active state of the disease manifests through intestinal inflammation and symptoms, such as diarrhea, chronic abdominal pain, perianal lesions, and obstruction. It causes inflammation at any point along the gastrointestinal tract from the mouth to the anus (Goethel, 2018). The chronic gastrointestinal disorder affects approximately 300 in 100,000 people in westernized European countries, Oceania, and North America. There is an increase in the prevalence rate of the disease in the newly industrialized countries, with Canada having the highest prevalence rate of Crohn's disease, with 1 in every 150 Canadians living with the chronic gastrointestinal disease or the other inflammatory bowel disease subtype, ulcerative colitis. Goethel (2018) posits that the onset of the disease begins in the late teens to early adulthood with bloating, weight loss, and fatigue, adding to the outlined symptoms of the disease in its active phase. Its high morbidity and the corresponding adverse implications on the economy demand an investigation into the underlying factors influencing its occurrence towards developing effective interventional measures. However, the main causes of the gastrointestinal disorder remain unknown despite endless research on inflammatory bowel disease. According to Nunez-Sanchez (2022), Crohn's disease is a complex disabling, idiopathic, progressive, and destructive disorder that can affect any part of the alimentary tract and whose etiology remains unknown. The causative agents or the disease's etiology remains unknown, with most research alluding to the multifactorial approaches in explaining its development in the host's body. Among the common suggestions for the pathogenesis of Crohn's disease is that it results from the interplay between the host's genetic constitution and environmental factors leading to an excessive immune response (Núñez-Sánchez, 2022). The excessive immune response leads to intestinal inflammation that may occur in any part of the host's gastrointestinal tract. Khanna (2017) suggests that the excessive immune responses to environmental triggers may be a result of the host's genetic predisposition to Crohn's disease, with the gastrointestinal microbiota playing a significant role in the pathogenesis of the disorder. Aldars-Garcia (2021) claims that the disease is a function of multiple factors, including defects in the detection and control of the gut microbiota, associated with unbalanced immune reactions, complex environmental conditions such as westernized lifestyle, and genetic predisposition. Nunez-Sanchez (2022) further adds that gut microbiota is a key factor in the development of Crohn's disease, with patients showing general changes in the composition of the gut microbiome. Chen (2020) reiterates the alteration of microbiota in patients diagnosed with Crohn's disease and thus emphasizing the key role played by the gut microbiome in the development of gastrointestinal disease. It is, therefore, important to investigate the role of the gut microbiome or its interplay with the host's immune system and Crohn's disease to understand the disorder's pathogenesis. Intestinal Microbiome in the Crohn's Disease It is evident that the gut or intestinal microbiome is closely related to the host's immune system and is an integral factor in the development of Crohn's disease. One of the key roles played by the intestinal microbiota, as mentioned herein above, is regulating and controlling the immune function along the alimentary tract. It is also established that any imbalances between the host and the gut microbiota may adversely aff...