Researchers engineered nonpathogenic Escherichia coli to detect gastrointestinal bleeding and secrete both a barnacle-derived adhesive protein (CP43K) and the mucosal-repair factor TFF3, enabling bacteria to adhere to inflamed tissue and deliver sustained therapeutics. Results reported in Nature Biotechnology and Nature show adhesion lasting up to 10 days in mouse models and improved weight recovery, reduced bleeding, and restored barrier function in two colitis models. The work combines synthetic biology, adhesive biomaterials and disease-triggered gene circuits to sustain localized therapy without repeated dosing. Key authors and data repositories are cited in the Nature Biotechnology publication and its Supplementary Information.