This study shows that Cdc42 regulates fibrogenic activation of human intestinal myofibroblasts by enhancing ECM production and contractile actomyosin cytoskeleton through AKT-mTOR signaling.

bioRxiv · Jul 10, 2026 · PreprintCell Biology

Fatty Acid Oxidation Suppression Reprograms Fibroblasts in Fibrostenotic Crohns Disease

Jihad Jihad Aljabban, Ayesh Awad, Benjamin D. McMichael, Valerie Gartner, Viguna Thomas, Bingfang Huan, David Weaver, Grace Lian, Caroline Beasley, Gwen W. Lau, Sophie Silverstein, Muneera Rehana Kapadia, Anna C. Salvador, Florian Rieder, Jessica E. Thaxton, , Shehzad Z. Sheikh

The paper identifies impaired fatty acid oxidation in fibroblasts from fibrostenotic Crohn's disease patients and links it to intestinal fibrosis.

bioRxiv · May 10, 2026 · PreprintGenomics

The Septin Cytoskeleton is a Novel Regulator of Intestinal Epithelial Barrier Integrity and Mucosal Inflammation

Nayden G. Naydenov, Gaizun Hu, Atif Zafar, Dominik Robak, Khosiyat Makhmudova, Susana Lechuga, Yuta Ohno, Naseer Sangwan, Saikat Bandyopadhyay, Ryan J. Musich, Erin D. Jeffery, Lei Sun, Armando Marino‐Melendez, Florian Rieder, Gloria Sheynkman, , Seham Ebrahim

This study investigates the role of SEPT9 in intestinal epithelial barrier integrity and inflammation, finding that its loss disrupts tight junctions and increases susceptibility to colitis.

JCI Insight · Oct 7, 2025Peer-reviewedPhysiology