Introduction: The intestinal barrier is a multi-faced structure lining the surface of the intestinal mucosa of the GI tract. To exert its main functions as a physical and immunological defense barrier, several components of the intestinal barrier act in a concerted and cooperative manner.
Areas covered: Herein, we first introduce to the basic organization of the intestinal barrier and then summarize different methods to assess barrier function in and ex vivo. Finally, we provide an in-depth overview of the relevance of intestinal barrier dysfunction in inflammatory bowel diseases.
Expert opinion: In parallel to a more fundamental understanding of the intestinal barrier as a key component for intestinal integrity is the notion that intestinal barrier defects are associated with a variety of diseases such as inflammatory bowel diseases. Recent research has fueled and perpetuated the concept that barrier defects are critical components of disease development, disease behavior, and potentially also an area of therapeutic intervention in IBD patients. Although being far away from standard, new technologies can be used to easily assess barrier healing in IBD and to derive clinical consequences from these findings such as more accurate forecasting of future disease behavior or the identification of novel therapeutic targets.
Keywords: Crohn’s disease; Intestinal barrier; confocal laser endomicroscopy; inflammatory bowel diseases; intestinal permeability; leaky gut; ulcerative colitis.