Genetic flaw found in painful gut disease
By Nathan Seppa
Because roughly one in five people with Crohn’s disease has a close relative who shares the illness, scientists have long suspected that the digestive disorder has an inherited component. Now, after years of genetic sleuthing, two independent research teams have identified a gene, called Nod2, that is mutated in many people with the disease.
This discovery and other research suggest that a defective protein encoded by the mutated gene induces immune cells to damage intestinal tissues.