Grant: CIHR Fellowship

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) includes both Crohn's Disease and ulcerative colitis - two lifelong conditions involving chronic, alternating periods of remitting and relapsing inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract. In addition to the primary gastrointestinal symptoms, the roughly 300,000 Canadians living with IBD are at increased risk to experience depression, anxiety, fatigue, and cognitive difficulties. The burden of these symptoms is felt on both the individual level and as a growing strain on the Canadian healthcare system. While treatments exist, there is no cure for IBD. The burden of IBD and its comorbidities may be reduced by identifying biological and experiential factors that are associated with IBD to inform interventions aimed at reducing risk for developing the disease. Biomarkers for IBD include changes in brain structure and function. Early life trauma is also highly prevalent among those with IBD. There is, however, a gap in our understanding for how the relationship between IBD and early life trauma may relate to differences in brain structure and function in IBD, and whether this is associated with the presence and severity of mental health challenges. I will apply structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging techniques to determine whether the association between IBD and altered cortical function and structure are related to experiences of childhood trauma, and how these associations might relate to mental health difficulties in those with IBD. Finding the answers to these questions will significantly advance our understanding of the individual-level predictors for IBD and associated mental health challenges, as well as the neural correlates that belie this relationship. This knowledge may facilitate the development of interventions to address risk factors for IBD among Canadians and reduce the burden on our healthcare system.