The integrity of tight junctions is an important part of gastrointestinal health, as they are key to maintaining the intestinal barrier. In Ulcerative Colitis (UC), the intestinal barrier is compromised, leading to increased permeability for bacteria and other damaging components to cross the epithelial layer into the gastrointestinal tract, where it can cause an exacerbated inflammatory response and tissue damage. microRNAs are small non-coding RNAs that repress gene expression through the binding of mRNA.