In this episode of "Gut Guts" coauthor Xuan-Zheng Shi discusses new research on intestinal fibrosis in Crohn’s-like colitis. The study found that mechanical stress causes a protein called CTGF to increase, leading to fibrosis. In a rat model, easing the mechanical stress reduced connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) and lessened fibrosis. This suggests that mechanical stress may be important in causing fibrosis in Crohn’s disease.   Article Citation:  Mechanical stress-induced connective tissue growth factor plays a critical role in intestinal fibrosis in Crohn’s-like colitis You-Min Lin, Ke Zhang, Ramasatyaveni Geesala, Kenneth E. Lipson, Suimin Qiu, Don W. Powell, Steven Cohn, and Xuan-Zheng Shi American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology 2024 327:2, G295-G305