# Assessing biomarkers of intestinal fibrosis and inflammation in Crohn's Disease via an endoscopic imaging catheter

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR · 2022 · $529,415

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
 Crohn’s disease (CD) produces chronic intestinal bowel damage and stenosis in the majority of patients.
Accurate characterization of these strictures is critical, as acute inflammatory strictures can respond to anti-
inflammatory therapy, but chronic strictures, which include both fibrosis and muscular hypertrophy, require
surgical resection. Intestinal fibrosis is an important predictor of future intestinal obstruction and penetrating
complications of CD. The standard diagnostic procedure for CD is endoscopic biopsy, in which small pieces of
tissue are removed from the innermost layer of the intestine for histopathology. Due to limited sampling depth,
endoscopic biopsy does not assess fibrosis in submucosal and muscular layers. Conventional non-invasive
modalities, such as MRI, CT and ultrasound (US), have shown limited sensitivity for intestinal fibrosis. Intestinal
strictures are often a mixture of chronic fibrosis and acute inflammation, which are respectively correlated with
increased collagen and hemoglobin in tissues, which act as molecular markers of distinct CD pathologies. In
addition, extensive previous studies of compressional US elastography have documented that increased
stiffness is a mechanical marker of chronic fibrotic strictures. These molecular and mechanical markers
complement each other, providing orthogonal diagnostic information. A diagnostic imaging procedure that can
simultaneously assess these phenotypes of CD is highly desirable for personalized therapeutic planning and
improved patient outcomes.
 Our preliminary studies in animals in vivo, human tissue samples ex vivo, and in human subjects have
validated that the molecular and mechanical markers of CD stricture pathology can be characterized by
advanced photoacoustic (PA)-US dual modality imaging approaches, including spectroscopic PA imaging, US
elastography, and our recent innovation of strain-PA imaging. An imaging catheter probe compatible with
standard ileocolonoscopy procedures, integrating all these imaging technologies, has been developed and
validated with tissue samples and in animals in vivo.
 Encouraged by our exciting preliminary results, we propose to fill this long-standing prognostic gap with
accurate characterization of molecular and mechanical phenotypes of CD. In the proposed project, we will first
objectively assess the sensitivity and specificity of each molecular and mechanical marker quantified by the
proposed imaging technology through experiments on clinically relevant rabbit models. In addition, to pave the
road to clinical translation, we will examine the feasibility and identify the limitations of the proposed technique
for use during clinical ileocolonoscopy via a pilot study in CD patients. The success of this project will advance
these molecular and mechanical biomarkers of distinct pathologies in CD strictures to practical clinical
measurement with PA-US dual modality endoscopic imaging, enabling accurate prognostic assessmen...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10227767
- **Project number:** 5R01DK125687-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR
- **Principal Investigator:** Peter D.R. Higgins
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $529,415
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-09-01 → 2025-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10227767

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10227767, Assessing biomarkers of intestinal fibrosis and inflammation in Crohn's Disease via an endoscopic imaging catheter (5R01DK125687-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10227767. Licensed CC0.

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