Host microbe interactions in the intestine: new therapeutic strategies in IBD

The gastrointestinal (GI) tract is home to trillions of commensal bacteria that play an important role in nutrition, immune system development and host defence. In inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), a chronic debilitating disease of the gastrointestinal tract, there is a breakdown in the healthy dialogue between our body and our microbial residents resulting in chronic immune attack in the bowel. In this presentation I will review key host and microbial pathways that maintain intestinal homeostasis and discuss how understanding these pathways may provide new therapies for the treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases.