Larazotide acetate (AT1001) is a Zonulin receptor antagonist, a tight junction modulator. Larazotide inhibition of zonulin results in reducing trafficking across epithelial cells in the intestines and reducing intestinal permeability and "leaky gut," thought to be a gateway to multiple autoimmune diseases, including celiac disease, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD, Crohnμs and ulcerative colitis), type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), chronic kidney disease (CKD) and several others. It has been shown to inhibit the effect of inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF-alpha) and interleukin (IL-4), blocking their increase of intestinal epithelial permeability.
