Cited research: Cell 141, 1135–1145 (2010)

Genes alone are rarely sufficient to cause disease. Researchers now report one possible explanation for this in Crohn's disease, a common inflammatory bowel disorder.

Thaddeus Stappenbeck and Herbert Virgin at Washington University in St Louis, Missouri, and their co-workers show that mice display some of the cellular abnormalities seen in Crohn's disease when they have a mutated Crohn's gene called Atg16l1 and are also infected with a specific gut virus.

The results suggest that these abnormalities occur through mechanisms similar to those of Crohn's disease. The authors say that mutations in multiple genes combined with additional environmental factors may recreate the full range of Crohn's symptoms in mice. C.L.