Researchers have succeeded in explaining why some people with gluten intolerance react the same way with oats. These results pave the way for a first treatment.
Australian researchers have found a new clue as to why some people develop celiac-like symptoms (gluten intolerance) when they eat oats. The results of their discovery are published in the Journal of Autoimmunity.
8% oat intolerance
In people with celiac disease, ingesting gluten, a protein found in rice, barley and wheat, elicits an immune response, which damages the gut. The symptoms are numerous: nausea, diarrhea, feeling of lethargy. As well as an increased risk of developing osteoporosis and cancers. However, ingestion of oats produces similar effects in some of these patients.
In fact, the results obtained by Australian researchers have shown that, of the 73 people with celiac disease followed for ten years, 8% of them also had oat intolerance.
According to doctors, this reaction is due to the fact that the protein in oats, avenin, is very similar to gluten.
Detect the toxicity of oats
For Dr. Melinda Harry, lead author of the study, this study is the first of its kind to clearly explain the link between oats and celiac disease. enabled a precise immune profile to be established thanks to the results observed in their blood samples, ”explains the latter.
Dr Jason Tye-Din, co-author of the study and gastroenterologist at the Royal Hospital in Melbourne, considers that the study provides specific details about oat proteins and the immune responses they trigger in these patients.
“It adds a vital piece to the puzzle of understanding oat toxicity,” enthuses the latter. Optimistic, the authors of the study therefore see their discovery as an effective way to target tests to detect the toxicity of oats and a lead for developing new treatments against celiac disease. Because, to date, the only existing treatment is to follow a draconian gluten-free diet.
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