TNF and inflammatory bowel disease: The 5 kDa formulation was particularly effective in regulating TNF-α levels after LPS stimulation, an important factor since TNF-α is a key inflammatory cytokine involved in the pathogenesis of diseases like IBD.55 The higher catalytic activity of Dex-CeNP coated with lower molecular weight dextran is intuitive, since one might expect that a lower molecular weight polymer would afford easier access to the cerium oxide surface.