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A putative anti-inflammatory role for TRPM8 in IBS 107 5 Table 5.1 Demographic characteristics of the study population. Patients with IBS Controls N =30 (Maastricht) + 26 (London) N =23 (Maastricht) + 6 (London) Age , median (IQR) 37.5 (27.0-53.8) 23.2 (20.8-30.9) Female , N (%) 35 (62.5) 13 (44.8) BMI , median (IQR) 25.2 (20.9-29.4) 22.9 (20.5-24.4) * GSRS , median (IQR) Abdominal pain Reflux syndrome Diarrhea syndrome Constipation syndrome Indigestion syndrome 3.7 (2.7-4.7) 2.0 (1.0-3.5) 3.7 (1.7-4.3) 3.3 (2.3-4.7) 4.3 (4.0-5.3) 1.3 (1.0-2.0) *** 1.0 (1.0-1.0) ** 1.7 (1.3-2.7) * 1.3 (1.0-2.3) *** 1.8 (1.5-3.3) *** HADS , score >8, N (%)# Depressive symptoms General anxiety symptoms 6 (20.0) 9 (30.0) - - IBS-subtype , N (%) Diarrhea Constipation Mixed Unspecified 14 (16.5) 11 (19.6) 15 (26.8) 16 (28.6) N.A. GSRS: gastrointestinal symptom reporting scale. HADS: Hospital anxiety and depression scale. #data only available for the Maastricht cohort. Differences between groups were analysed using Chi square and Mann- Whitney U test. * P <0.05, ** P <0.01, *** P <0.001 versus control. Symptom diaries A representative subset of patients with IBS from the Maastricht cohort (N=15) filled in a 14-day end-of-day symptom diary 2 weeks prior to colonoscopy in order to quantify symptom severity. Symptoms were scored based on a 0-5 Likert scale. In addition, the validated questionnaires Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale (GSRS) and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Score (HADS) were collected for characterization of the patient population. Tissue collection For TRPM8 IHC experiements, full thickness colon samples were obtained from patients undergoing surgery for colon cancer ( N =3) or IBD resection ( N =4) at The Royal London Hospital (Barts Health NHS Trust) with approval of the East London and The City HA Local Research Ethics Committee and after written patient consent. Specimens were taken following macroscopic examination and were a minimum of 10 cm away from tumor, resection margins or lymphatic drainage field.