A bacterium, which can exist in the intestinal flora, is able to leave the intestine to activate the immune system in other organs and trigger autoimmune diseases.
Autoimmune diseases have been on the increase in recent years. According to some, the increase of hyd-giene in our society which would be responsible for a defect in education of the immune system in young children.
Scientists are proposing another very serious lead. Bacteria found in the small intestine of genetically predisposed mice and humans can exit the gut and trigger an autoimmune response in other organs. This is what emerges from a new study published in Science. The positive point is that the autoimmune reaction could therefore be suppressed with an antibiotic or, above all, a vaccine specifically targeting these bacteria.
These results suggest promising new approaches for the treatment of chronic autoimmune diseases, such as systemic lupus erythematosus.
A bacterium from the intestinal microbiota
Gut bacteria are linked to a whole host of diseases, including autoimmune diseases, which are characterized by attack on healthy tissue by the immune system.
To shed light on this phenomenon, a research team from Yale University looked at Enterococcus gallinarum, a bacterium they discovered that is able to spontaneously escape from the intestine and go elsewhere in the body to immune system organs such as the lymph nodes, liver and spleen.
Triggering of antibody production
The researchers observed that E. gallinarum is able to initiate the production of autoantibodies and inflammation in tissues outside the intestine in mouse models genetically predisposed to lupus.
They found the same mechanism for triggering inflammation in the liver of people carrying this bacterium and suffering from an autoimmune liver disease, whereas this bacterium is not found there in healthy people.
Possibility of suppressing inflammation
In other experiments, the research team found that it was possible to suppress autoimmunity in mice with an antibiotic or vaccine targeting E. gallinarum. In both cases, it is possible to suppress the growth of the bacteria in the tissues and reduce its effects on the immune system.
“The vaccine against E. gallinarum is a more specific approach, because vaccination against other bacteria that we had studied did not prevent mortality and autoimmunity, ”explained one of the researchers.
This vaccination against the bacteria E. gallinarum could improve the lives of patients with autoimmune disease.
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