Chief Investigator:

Dr Suzanne Mashtoub

Research Area:

Clinical Study

Funding Amount:

$ 74,970

Recipient:

The University of Adelaide

Overview:

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic, relapsing, incurable and debilitating inflammatory bowel disease which commonly has its onset during childhood and adolescent years. Despite attaining remission, children are at risk of clinical recurrence, side-effects from corticosteroids, surgery and poor growth, highlighting the need to identify novel therapeutic approaches. We discovered the anti-inflammatory and reparative properties of orally-administered Emu Oil, extracted from Emu fat, in several models of intestinal disorders, including acute UC. The encouraging preclinical findings suggest therapeutic potential for Emu Oil in children suffering from UC.