Genetic and environmental factors drive personalized medicine for Crohn's disease

The introduction of anti-TNF antibody therapy has changed the course of treatment for Crohn's disease. However, the fundamental mechanism for the onset of Crohn's disease is still unknown, and the treatment strategy for this disease remains suboptimal. The assessment of the disease phenotype based on key environmental factors and genetic background may indicate options for the personalized treatment of Crohn's disease. In this issue of the JCI, Liu et al. show that consumption of tobacco and the mutation of ATG16L1(T300A), a prevalent Crohn's disease susceptibility allele, drive defects in cells at the bottom of the intestinal crypt, the Paneth cells. These factors may provide novel targets for personalized medicine.