Hot chilli peppers, could they be the answer?
Studies into the body’s reaction to chilli peppers could provide a clue to the pain and sensitivity of bowel disease, scientists say. Researchers had already established that chillies cause their fiery reaction because they stimulate a particular molecular trigger, or receptor in the mouth. These chilli receptors are found on sensory nerve fibres and are triggered when they are exposed to heat, or to the ‘burning’ ingredients of chilli peppers. Now researchers from Hammersmith Hospital and the Imperial College School of Medicine, in London, have found that the chilli-sensitive molecule, called VR1, is also linked with inflammatory bowel conditions. These inflammatory bowel conditions include Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis. Drug hope The team, led by Professor Praveen Anand, discovered a dramatic increase in the number of “chilli-receptors” in the guts of those patients who were suffering from inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). IBD affects about one in 2,000 people in the UK. Professor A
