RNA sequencing on intestinal biopsies from inflammatory bowel disease patients treated with vehicle control, MEK inhibitor, or infliximab

By investigating an intergenic haplotype on chr21q22, independently linked to inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), ankylosing spondylitis, primary sclerosing cholangitis and Takayasu’s arteritis, we discover that the causal gene, ETS2, is a master regulator of inflammatory responses in human macrophages and delineate how the risk haplotype increases ETS2 expression. Using a database of cellular signatures, we identified drugs that could modulate this pathway. To validate the anti-inflammatory activity of one class of small molecules ex vivo, we obtained biopsies from patients with active IBD and cultured these biopsies with a selective, non-ATP competitive MEK inhibitor (PD-0325901), infliximab (positive control), or DMSO (vehicle control) for 18 hours, then performed RNA sequencing.EGA study EGAS00001007534