Due to copyright issues, an electronic copy of the thesis must be ordered from the faculty. For the faculty to have time to process the order, the order must be received by the faculty at the latest 2 days before the public defence. Orders received later than 2 days before the defence will not be processed. After the public defence, please address any inquiries regarding the thesis to the candidate.
Trial Lecture – time and place
See Trial Lecture.
Adjudication committee
- First opponent: Professor Jakob Benedict Seidelin, Rigshospitalet Copenhagen, Denmark
- Second opponent: Professor Rasmus Goll, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway,
- Third member and chair of the evaluation committee: Professor Yvonne Böttcher, University of Oslo
Chair of the Defence
Associate Professor Knut Magne Augestad, University of Oslo
Principal Supervisor
Senior Consultant Petr Ricanek, University of Oslo
Summary
This thesis is conducted within the fields of medical and biomedical research, with a particular focus on gastroenterology, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and translational molecular medicine.
The overarching aim of the thesis was to link molecular profiling (-omics) to clinical disease course in order to identify novel diagnostic, prognostic, and predictive biomarkers, as well as potential therapeutic targets in IBD. Key research questions addressed how the gut microbiota and host gene expression are altered in newly diagnosed IBD, how these alterations differ between Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, and how molecular findings relate to inflammatory markers and long-term clinical outcomes.
The work is based on the IBD-Character cohort, a European multicenter study comprising 768 participants. Treatment-naïve patients with suspected IBD were recruited alongside symptomatic and healthy controls. Fecal samples and mucosal biopsies from inflamed and non-inflamed intestinal segments were collected at diagnosis. Gut microbiota composition, including transcriptionally active microbiota, was analyzed in fecal and mucosal samples, and host gene expression was assessed in intestinal biopsies. Molecular data were integrated with established inflammatory markers and clinical follow-up data.
The thesis identifies distinct microbiota and gene expression patterns in new-onset IBD and demonstrates that non-inflamed tissue adjacent to inflamed areas provides important insight into disease-driving mechanisms. Several molecular signatures were associated with severe disease course and response to anti–tumor necrosis factor therapy. Overall, the findings highlight the potential of molecular biomarkers for clinical risk stratification and personalized treatment in IBD.
Additional information
Contact the research support staff.