Stephen Coleman, PhD
Assistant Professor & Director of Equine Breeding & Genetics Lab
Equine Sciences
Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
Gastrointestinal (GI) homeostasis is the balance between the functions of the epithelial cells lining the gut, the immune responses to pathogenic organisms, the tolerance of commensal bacteria. Maintenance of homeostasis plays an essential part in ensuring normal physiology and performance of the GI tract. Supporting this balance is a complex network of factors which regulate the physiological function and gene expression of the GI tissues, the integrity of the mucosal barrier, and the host immune response to resist pathogenic microorganisms while supporting commensal bacteria which provide benefits to the host. These factors interact and work together and respond to changes in diet, environment, application external stress and challenges by infectious agents or toxins to maintain homeostasis and healthy GI function.
MicroRNAs (miRNA) are single-stranded 20-22 basepair regulatory non-coding RNAs. They have essential roles in the control of protein-coding gene expression and are emerging as critical regulators of the interactions between host and microbiome. Their influence in the GI includes regulation of cellular proliferation, differentiation, inflammation, and apoptosis. Some miRNAs expressed in GI tissues are packaged in vesicles and secreted into the intestinal lumen where they play a role in determining the composition of the resident microbial population. This presentation will focus on the current knowledge of the role of miRNAs have in maintaining homeostasis in the gut and work in the Coleman Lab to understand this process in the equine GI tract.