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Causes
The cause of ulcerative colitis remains unknown. The immune system in the mucosa of the large intestine is exposed to a variety of antigens from food products and billions of bacteria live there. In theory, any of these may trigger the release of proteins that sets off an immune reaction, bringing inflammatory cells to the colon lining. Recently, scientists searching for the cause of UC have developed three major hypotheses:
 
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Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America: This nonprofit, volunteer-driven organization offers a wealth of information about living with UC, including physician listings and clinical trial information. |
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MedlinePlus--Ulcerative Colitis: A service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health, MedlinePlus includes a wide range of links offering overviews, discussing diagnosis/symptoms, treatment and research. Also see the interactive tutorial.
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American Gastroenterological Association--Inflammatory Bowel Disease: IBD refers to both UC and Crohn's disease, and this page covers possible causes, symptoms, and treatment. |
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NDDIC--Ulcerative Colitis: From the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse, this lengthy page explains UC and its treatment. |
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Cedars-Sinai--Ulcerative Colitis: This page from the top California hospital discusses symptoms, possible causes,risk factors, diagnosis, and treatment. |
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Ulcerative Colitis-Related Clinical Trials Information |
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- That unidentified pathogens, most likely harmful bacteria or viruses in the colon, trigger the body's immune response, which is natural. But the immune cells are not effective in destroying the pathogens. Therefore, chronic inflammation results, harming the lining of the colon.
- That a common dietary antigen or a nonpathogenic microbe is present in the colon of people with UC. Their immune systems overreact, mounting an abnormally intense response to these common substances. It's possible that people who develop UC are genetically predisposed to the immune overreaction, whereas others have no immune response to these same dietary antigens or microbes. One example of this hypothesis in action occurs when some people ingest the protein in cows' milk. Cows' milk is known to cause undesirable symptoms in many people with ulcerative colitis-their immune systems send cells to fight the milk protein. On the other hand, people with healthy colons often have no negative reaction to cows' milk.
- That UC is triggered by proteins present on the surface of the patient's own intestinal cells. The theory holds that the body mounts an appropriate immune response to an antigen it discovers in the colon. But because of similarities between the proteins on the surface of the antigen and those on cells in the colon, the immune system wrongly attacks the lining of the patient's colon. This is called an autoimmune response. It results in inflammation, which destroys the cells lining the colon.
Over the next few years, further research may answer which of these theories holds the most promise for future treatment.
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