IBD Plexus®
IBD Plexus® is a revolutionary research platform that has been redefining how scientists study IBD and discover game-changing therapies.
IBD Plexus is the most comprehensive bank of IBD information and insights that brings together hundreds of thousands of physical samples (blood, stool, and intestinal cells) from patients with IBD and a linked data bank that houses millions of data points (patient-reported outcomes and genetic and molecular data). The most exciting aspect is that researchers across the globe are able to accelerate their work by using this huge amount of readily available data to better understand IBD and more quickly get to new treatments.
Over 200 research projects are being conducted by life science companies and academic researchers using IBD Plexus. Researchers can gain access to well-curated, high-quality data and biosamples to answer a range of high-impact research questions that would otherwise have taken years to have collect.
IBD Plexus is fed by several longitudinal studies of IBD patients that are funded and managed by the Foundation: IBD SIRQC, SPARC IBD, CAPTURE IBD, and IBD Qorus. MyIBD Health Study, our newest longitudinal study, will launch in 2024. Data from the patients in these studies (known as research cohorts) are shared with researchers via the Plexus platform. In addition, IBD Plexus researchers share any new data that they generate from Plexus biosamples back to the platform after a period of exclusivity expires, adding greater breadth and depth to the data.
Accelerating Research
IBD Plexus speeds innovation among the Foundation’s research partners—including those in academia and the pharmaceutical and biotech industry. Partners can quickly access the extensive data saving them from having to identify, screen, and recruit patients to donate their data and biosamples for every new study. This collaborative approach means researchers can analyze data at a rapid pace, potentially cutting years off the research lifecycle.
Advancing Personalized Medicine
IBD Plexus is helping advance precision medicine. Precision medicine—which tailors treatment to each patient based on their unique genetics, behavior, and environment—has transformed cancer care, and it’s now on the verge of revolutionizing the management of IBD. IBD Plexus is also helping researchers better understand which factors drive Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis in different patients so scientists can eventually develop new drugs to target them.
Assessing Cost Effectiveness of Biologics
IBD Plexus is being used to evaluate the cost effectiveness of expensive IBD treatments, such as biologic drugs. Real-world evidence is used to determine whether better patient outcomes (such as reaching remission and avoiding surgeries) justify the high price tag of these therapies and perhaps even result in long-term savings.
About the IBD Plexus Leadership Team
Together with the Foundation, IBD Plexus is led by James Lewis, MD, of the University of Pennsylvania. The leadership team also includes experts from the, the University of Pittsburgh, and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
