C01

Label-free endoscopic analysis of immune-epithelial communication with advanced optical technologies

C01

Project Summary

Advanced label-free optical technologies such as multiphoton microscopy and Raman spectroscopy hold great potential for characterizing mucosal inflammation in vivo. Using these approaches, we will investigate the optical properties related to the function and dysfunction of the epithelial barrier, as well as the consequences of epithelial barrier defects—including immune cell infiltration and bacterial translocation—in preclinical colitis models ex vivo and in vivo. Building on these studies, project C01 aims to further develop advanced optical technologies for the in vivo evaluation of mucosal inflammation in IBD patients.

Selected project-relevant publications

Roth D, Düll MM, Horst LJ, Lindemann A, Malzer X, Koop K, Zundler S, Vetter M, Jefremow A, Atreya R, Geppert C, Weidemann S, Waldner MJ, Dietrich P, Günther C, Munoz LE, Herrmann M, Scheffold A, Neurath MF, Siebler J, Schramm C, Kremer AE, Leppkes M.
Integrin αVβ6: Autoantigen and Driver of Epithelial Remodeling in Colon and Bile Ducts in Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease.
J Crohns Colitis. 2025 Feb 4;19(2):jjae131. doi: 10.1093/ecco-jcc/jjae131.

Erkert L, Ruder B, Kabisch M, Gamez Belmonte R, Patankar JV, Gonzalez Acera M, Schödel L, Chiriac MT, Cineus R, Gnafakis S, Leupold T, Thoma OM, Stolzer I, Taut A, Thonn V, Zundler S, Günther C, Diefenbach A, Kühl AA, Hegazy AN, Waldner M, Basic M, Bleich A, Neurath MF, Wirtz S, Becker C; TRR241 IBDome Consortium.
TIFA renders intestinal epithelial cells responsive to microbial ADP-heptose and drives colonic inflammation in mice.
Mucosal Immunol. 2025 Apr;18(2):453-466. doi: 10.1016/j.mucimm.2025.01.003.

Thoma OM, Naschberger E, Kubánková M, Larafa I, Kramer V, Menchicchi B, Merkel S, Britzen-Laurent N, Jefremow A, Grützmann R, Koop K, Neufert C, Atreya R, Guck J, Stürzl M, Neurath MF, Waldner MJ.
p21 Prevents the Exhaustion of CD4+ T Cells Within the Antitumor Immune Response Against Colorectal Cancer.
Gastroenterology. 2024 Feb;166(2):284-297.e11. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2023.09.017. Epub 2023 Sep 19. PMID: 37734420.

Schulz-Kuhnt A, Rühle K, Javidmehr A, Döbrönti M, Biwank J, Knittel S, Neidlinger P, Leupold J, Liu LJ, Dedden M, Taudte RV, Gessner A, Fromm MF, Mielenz D, Kreiss L, Waldner MJ, Schürmann S, Friedrich O, Dietel B, López-Posadas R, Plattner C; TRR241 IBDome Consortium; Zundler S, Becker C, Atreya R, Neurath MF, Atreya I.
ATP citrate lyase (ACLY)-dependent immunometabolism in mucosal T cells drives experimental colitis in vivo.
Gut. 2024 Mar 7;73(4):601-612. doi: 10.1136/gutjnl-2023-330543. PMID: 38176897.

Sommer K, Heidbreder K, Kreiss L, Dedden M, Paap EM, Wiendl M, Becker E, Atreya R, Müller TM, Atreya I, Waldner M, Schürmann S, Friedrich O, Neurath MF, Zundler S.
Anti-β7 integrin treatment impedes the recruitment on non-classical monocytes to the gut and delays macrophage-mediated intestinal wound healing.
Clin Transl Med. 2023 Apr;13(4):e1233. doi: 10.1002/ctm2.1233. PMID: 37029786; PMCID: PMC10082567.

Krug J, Rodrian G, Petter K, Yang H, Khoziainova S, Guo W, Bénard A, Merkel S, Gellert S, Maschauer S, Spermann M, Waldner M, Bailey P, Pilarsky C, Liebl A, Tripal P, Christoph J, Naschberger E, Croner R, Schellerer VS, Becker C, Hartmann A, Tüting T, Prante O, Grützmann R, Grivennikov SI, Stürzl M, Britzen-Laurent N.
N-glycosylation Regulates Intrinsic IFN-γ Resistance in Colorectal Cancer: Implications for Immunotherapy.
Gastroenterology. 2023 Mar;164(3):392-406.e5. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2022.11.018. Epub 2022 Nov 17. PMID: 36402190; PMCID: PMC10009756.

Rath T, Atreya R, Bodenschatz J, Uter W, Geppert CE, Vitali F, Fischer S, Waldner MJ, Colombel JF, Hartmann A, Neurath MF.
Intestinal Barrier Healing Is Superior to Endoscopic and Histologic Remission for Predicting Major Adverse Outcomes in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: The Prospective ERIca Trial.
Gastroenterology. 2023 Feb;164(2):241-255. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2022.10.014. Epub 2022 Oct 21. PMID: 36279923.

Mühlberg A, Ritter P, Langer S, Goossens C, Nübler S, Schneidereit D, Taubmann O, Denzinger F, Nörenberg D, Haug M, Schürmann S, Horstmeyer R, Maier AK, Goldmann WH, Friedrich O, Kreiss L.
SEMPAI: a Self-Enhancing Multi-Photon Artificial Intelligence for Prior-Informed Assessment of Muscle Function and Pathology.
Adv Sci (Weinh). 2023 Oct;10(28):e2206319. doi: 10.1002/advs.202206319. Epub 2023 Aug 15. PMID: 37582656; PMCID: PMC10558688.

Soteriou D, Kubánková M, Schweitzer C, López-Posadas R, Pradhan R, Thoma OM, Györfi AH, Matei AE, Waldner M, Distler JHW, Scheuermann S, Langejürgen J, Eckstein M, Schneider-Stock R, Atreya R, Neurath MF, Hartmann A, Guck J.
Rapid single-cell physical phenotyping of mechanically dissociated tissue biopsies.
Nat Biomed Eng. 2023 Nov;7(11):1392-1403. doi: 10.1038/s41551-023-01015-3. Epub 2023 Apr 6. PMID: 37024677; PMCID: PMC10651479.

Kreiss L, Thoma OM, Lemire S, Lechner K, Carlé B, Dilipkumar A, Kunert T, Scheibe K, Heichler C, Merten AL, Weigmann B, Neufert C, Hildner K, Vieth M, Neurath MF, Friedrich O, Schürmann S, Waldner MJ.
Label-Free Characterization and Quantification of Mucosal Inflammation in Common Murine Colitis Models With Multiphoton Imaging.
Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2022 Nov 2;28(11):1637-1646. doi: 10.1093/ibd/izac114. PMID: 35699622; PMCID: PMC9629455.

Schmalzl A, Leupold T, Kreiss L, Waldner M, Schürmann S, Neurath MF, Becker C, Wirtz S.
Interferon regulatory factor 1 (IRF-1) promotes intestinal group 3 innate lymphoid responses during Citrobacter rodentium infection.
Nat Commun. 2022 Sep 29;13(1):5730. doi: 10.1038/s41467-022-33326-5. PMID: 36175404; PMCID: PMC9522774.

Lemire S, Thoma OM, Kreiss L, Völkl S, Friedrich O, Neurath MF, Schürmann S, Waldner MJ.
Natural NADH and FAD Autofluorescence as Label-Free Biomarkers for Discriminating Subtypes and Functional States of Immune Cells.
Int J Mol Sci. 2022 Feb 20;23(4):2338. doi: 10.3390/ijms23042338. PMID: 35216453; PMCID: PMC8880312.

Kreiss L, Ganzleben I, Mühlberg A, Ritter P, Schneidereit D, Becker C, Neurath MF, Friedrich O, Schürmann S, Waldner M.
Label-free analysis of inflammatory tissue remodeling in murine lung tissue based on multiphoton microscopy, Raman spectroscopy and machine learning.
J Biophotonics. 2022 Sep;15(9):e202200073. doi: 10.1002/jbio.202200073. Epub 2022 Jun 26. PMID: 35611635.

Heichler C, Schmied A, Enderle K, Scheibe K, Murawska M, Schmid B, Waldner MJ, Neurath MF, Neufert C.
Targeting STAT3 Signaling in COL1+ Fibroblasts Controls Colitis-Associated Cancer in Mice.
Cancers (Basel). 2022 Mar 14;14(6):1472. doi: 10.3390/cancers14061472. PMID: 35326623; PMCID: PMC8946800.

Yu YQ, Thonn V, Patankar JV, Thoma OM, Waldner M, Zielinska M, Bao LL, Gonzalez-Acera M, Wallmüller S, Engel FB, Stürzl M, Neurath MF, Liebing E, Becker C.
SMYD2 targets RIPK1 and restricts TNF-induced apoptosis and necroptosis to support colon tumor growth.
Cell Death Dis. 2022 Jan 12;13(1):52. doi: 10.1038/s41419-021-04483-0. PMID: 35022391; PMCID: PMC8755774.