Researchers at INRA, INSERM, AP-HP, and UPMC have just discovered a new protein with anti-inflammatory properties, which has been named MAM (microbial anti-inflammatory molecule). It is secreted by the bacterium Faecalibacterium prausnitzii and helps fight intestinal inflammation. This discovery, recently published in the journal Gut, is a major advance in efforts to develop new means of treating inflammatory bowel disease.