Coeliakie
Wat is coeliakie ?
Bij mensen met coeliakie veroorzaakt
voedsel dat gluten bevat, beschadiging van het slijmvlies van de dunne darm waarna de darm
zijn werk niet goed meer kan doen. Dit leidt tot slechte opname van de voedingsstoffen uit
het voedsel, met alle gevolgen van dien. Gluten komt voor in tarwe, haver, rogge, gerst,
spelt en kamut.
http://www.glutenvrij.nl/
OOGTV, lokale omroep van Groningen, zond
eerder de reportage "75.000 coeliakiepatienten spoorloos" uit. In deze film
vertelt de arts Dr. J.W. Thijs over de medische kanten van coeliakie. De
coeliakiepatiënten Han Slager, Gustav Calkhoven en zijn dochter Carolien komen ook aan
het woord. www.glutenvrij.nl/bieb/AZG_WM_BB.wmw
Metabolic Response To Colitis
Varies Depending Upon Whether Inflammation Is Chronic Or Acute
A new study being published by the American Physiological Society finds that the body
responds differently to colitis (inflammation of the colon) based on whether the disease
is acute (sharp and brief) or chronic (long-term). Researchers, using an experimental
mouse model of colitis, discovered that the effects of acute colitis were associated with
decreased body weight, food intake, and body fat content. Chronic colitis was associated
with reduced body fat content, decreased bone mineral density and attenuated use of
energy, termed energy expenditure. The discovery may help lead to better symptom
management for the 500,000 Americans who live with the disease.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/02/070226131518.htm
Researchers study the possible
relationship between myopathies and coeliac disease
Inflammatory myopathies are immunological diseases that lead to inflammations in muscular
tissue. As of yet, little is known about the cause of these myopathies, but it is believed
to be an abnormal immune response by our bodies. Since coeliac disease has occasionally
been reported in patients with inflammatory myopathies, UAB researchers are investigating
the relationship between myopathy and intolerance to gluten.
Inflammatory myopathies are inflammatory infiltrates in the muscle. This group of diseases
includes polymyositis, dermatomyositis, and inclusion-body myositis. Little is known about
the cause and the etiopathogenic mechanisms of these myopathies, but it is believed to be
an abnormal immune response by our bodies, which identify body parts as alien. In this
particular case, the body parts are the skin and the muscle, though other parts, such as
the lungs and the myocardium, may also be affected.
The research team observed that it is not a rare occurrence for various autoimmune
diseases to exist in the same patient. Indeed, coeliac disease -- caused by a reaction to
gluten found in cereals -- has been reported in patients with inflammatory myopathy,
especially those with inclusion-body myositis.
Researchers at the Teaching Unit at the UAB's Vall d'Hebron Hospital have investigated
these links by looking at coeliac patients whose cases suggest a similar immunopathogenic
mechanism in coeliac disease and certain myopathies, as well as a common genetic
substrate.
The scientists are considering the possibility that, at least in part, some inflammatory
myopathies are a clinical expression of intolerance to gluten, though they point out the
need for more studies to be carried out to confirm or support these findings. The results
are particularly important in the case of inclusion-body myositis -- for which there is no
effective treatment -- since we can now suggest that a gluten-free diet may improve the
situation of a patient. This hypothesis must now be tested using immunosuppressants, as
has been done with other extraintestinal manifestations of reactions to gluten.
http://www.uab.es/
Gut feeling for antibody detection
A protein-coated gold electrode to test people for gluten intolerance has been devised by
German scientists. The news is reported in the latest edition of the Royal Society of
Chemistry journal The Analyst. Drs Thomas Balkenhol and Fred Lisdat and a team at the
University of Applied Sciences, Wildau, have invented the sensor that detects antibodies
involved in coeliac disease. The disease is an autoimmune reaction to gluten – found
in wheat, rye and barley – that prevents the absorption of essential nutrients in the
gut. The method works by immobilising gliadins – proteins found in gluten – on
the surface of gold electrodes. People with coeliac disease produce antigliadin antibodies
in response to gluten. When the gold electrodes are immersed in blood serum samples from
celiac sufferers, these antibodies bind to the gliadins. The electrical properties of the
electrodes then change in proportion to antibody concentration.
http://www.alphagalileo.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=readrelease
&releaseid=519189&ez_search=1
