A connection has been found between gluten intolerance and cystic fibrosis. Free Technical Library News

NEWS OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, NOVELTY IN ELECTRONICS
Free technical library / timeline

Link found between gluten intolerance and cystic fibrosis

04.12.2018

An international research team from Italy and France has discovered a new "culprit" in the development of celiac disease - a mutation in the gene for the transmembrane regulator of cystic fibrosis. The discovery allows the development of therapeutic approaches for the treatment of celiac disease.

Celiac disease is a severe bowel disorder caused by damage to the villi of the small intestine from certain foods that contain certain proteins. Among these proteins, gluten (gluten) is a substance found in wheat, rye and barley.

Some people are genetically predisposed to this disease, but the mechanism of the disease is triggered by external factors. When people with celiac disease eat a diet containing gluten, their immune system triggers a response against their own cells, damaging the lining of the small intestine. About 1 in 100 people suffer from celiac disease, and it most often occurs in patients suffering from an inherited disease such as cystic fibrosis (cystic fibrosis). "This coincidence made us wonder if there is a link between the two diseases at the molecular level," said Luigi Mayuri from the University of Eastern Piedmont (Italy).

Cystic fibrosis is characterized by the accumulation of a thick layer of sticky mucus in the patient's lungs or intestines. This disease is caused by mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane regulator (CFTR) gene. The eponymous protein, regulated by this gene, is involved in the transport of chloride ions across the cell membrane and plays an important role in maintaining the level of mucous fluid - when it fails, the mucus becomes clogged. In addition, CFTR failure causes a number of additional reactions in the lungs and other organs, including the intestines, by activating the immune system. These effects are very similar to the body's responses to gluten in celiac patients. Scientists have taken a closer look at the molecular basis of these similarities.

Gluten is difficult to digest, so relatively long protein parts - peptides - enter the intestines. Using gluten-sensitive human intestinal cell lines, the researchers found that one specific peptide, P31-43, directly binds to CFTR and impairs its function.

Moreover, it appears that the interaction between P31-43 and CFTR can be interrupted by a CFTR amplifier called the VX-770. To test this, scientists conducted an experiment. First, they implanted VX-770 into intestinal cells or into tissue samples collected from patients with celiac disease. Then they were exposed to P31-43 - and the peptide did not cause an immune response. Thus, the researchers concluded that VX-770 protects gluten-sensitive epithelial cells from the harmful effects of gluten. In addition, the researchers found that VX-770 could relieve gluten-sensitive mice from symptoms of intestinal disease caused by the protein.

So far, there is no cure for celiac disease. The only therapeutic strategy is to follow a strict diet. However, the current study is a promising step towards the development of a suitable therapy. Drugs that have been developed to treat cystic fibrosis could also be explored as a starting point for drug development for celiac disease, the study found.

<< Back: Aqua Computer Kryographics Next full coverage water blocks 04.12.2018

>> Forward: Graphene and starch hydrogel coatings for brain implants 03.12.2018

Latest news of science and technology, new electronics:

The existence of an entropy rule for quantum entanglement has been proven 09.05.2024

Quantum mechanics continues to amaze us with its mysterious phenomena and unexpected discoveries. Recently, Bartosz Regula from the RIKEN Center for Quantum Computing and Ludovico Lamy from the University of Amsterdam presented a new discovery that concerns quantum entanglement and its relation to entropy. Quantum entanglement plays an important role in modern quantum information science and technology. However, the complexity of its structure makes understanding and managing it challenging. Regulus and Lamy's discovery shows that quantum entanglement follows an entropy rule similar to that for classical systems. This discovery opens new perspectives in the field of quantum information science and technology, deepening our understanding of quantum entanglement and its connection to thermodynamics. The results of the study indicate the possibility of reversibility of entanglement transformations, which could greatly simplify their use in various quantum technologies. Opening a new rule ... >>

Mini air conditioner Sony Reon Pocket 5 09.05.2024

Summer is a time for relaxation and travel, but often the heat can turn this time into an unbearable torment. Meet a new product from Sony - the Reon Pocket 5 mini-air conditioner, which promises to make summer more comfortable for its users. Sony has introduced a unique device - the Reon Pocket 5 mini-conditioner, which provides body cooling on hot days. With it, users can enjoy coolness anytime, anywhere by simply wearing it around their neck. This mini air conditioner is equipped with automatic adjustment of operating modes, as well as temperature and humidity sensors. Thanks to innovative technologies, Reon Pocket 5 adjusts its operation depending on the user's activity and environmental conditions. Users can easily adjust the temperature using a dedicated mobile app connected via Bluetooth. Additionally, specially designed T-shirts and shorts are available for convenience, to which a mini air conditioner can be attached. The device can oh ... >>

Energy from space for Starship 08.05.2024

Producing solar energy in space is becoming more feasible with the advent of new technologies and the development of space programs. The head of the startup Virtus Solis shared his vision of using SpaceX's Starship to create orbital power plants capable of powering the Earth. Startup Virtus Solis has unveiled an ambitious project to create orbital power plants using SpaceX's Starship. This idea could significantly change the field of solar energy production, making it more accessible and cheaper. The core of the startup's plan is to reduce the cost of launching satellites into space using Starship. This technological breakthrough is expected to make solar energy production in space more competitive with traditional energy sources. Virtual Solis plans to build large photovoltaic panels in orbit, using Starship to deliver the necessary equipment. However, one of the key challenges ... >>

New method for creating powerful batteries 08.05.2024

With the development of technology and the expanding use of electronics, the issue of creating efficient and safe energy sources is becoming increasingly urgent. Researchers at the University of Queensland have unveiled a new approach to creating high-power zinc-based batteries that could change the landscape of the energy industry. One of the main problems with traditional water-based rechargeable batteries was their low voltage, which limited their use in modern devices. But thanks to a new method developed by scientists, this drawback has been successfully overcome. As part of their research, scientists turned to a special organic compound - catechol. It turned out to be an important component that can improve battery stability and increase its efficiency. This approach has led to a significant increase in the voltage of zinc-ion batteries, making them more competitive. According to scientists, such batteries have several advantages. They have b ... >>

Alcohol content of warm beer 07.05.2024

Beer, as one of the most common alcoholic drinks, has its own unique taste, which can change depending on the temperature of consumption. A new study by an international team of scientists has found that beer temperature has a significant impact on the perception of alcoholic taste. The study, led by materials scientist Lei Jiang, found that at different temperatures, ethanol and water molecules form different types of clusters, which affects the perception of alcoholic taste. At low temperatures, more pyramid-like clusters form, which reduces the pungency of the "ethanol" taste and makes the drink taste less alcoholic. On the contrary, as the temperature increases, the clusters become more chain-like, resulting in a more pronounced alcoholic taste. This explains why the taste of some alcoholic drinks, such as baijiu, can change depending on temperature. The data obtained opens up new prospects for beverage manufacturers, ... >>

Random news from the Archive

A new method of observing the Sun 19.12.2020

An international team of scientists has developed a new deep learning method for stable classification and quality quantification of solar images from ground-based solar observatories.

To ensure constant monitoring of the Sun, regardless of the schedule of the day, night and local weather conditions, ground-based telescopes are located around the globe. However, the Earth's atmosphere imposes the strongest restrictions on observations of the Sun - clouds can obscure the solar disk, and air vibrations can blur the image. In order to select the best observations from multiple simultaneous observations and detect local deterioration in quality, an objective evaluation of the image quality is required.

The scientists applied artificial intelligence to obtain a quality score similar to human interpretation: a neural network was developed to learn the characteristics of high-quality images and estimate the deviation of real observations from an ideal reference. The scientists' approach is based on generative adversarial networks (GANs), which are commonly used to generate synthetic images.

For example, creating realistic human faces or translating street maps into satellite imagery. This is achieved by approximating the distribution of real images and sampling from it. The content of the generated image can be random or determined by the conditional description of the image.

GAN was used to generate high quality images from the content description of the same image. Therefore, the neural network first extracts the important characteristics of a high-quality image, such as the position and appearance of the solar cells, and then generates the original image from this compressed description. When the same procedure is applied to downgraded images, the network encodes the image content again, but omits the low quality features in the reconstruction. This is a consequence of the approximate distribution of GAN images, which can only generate high quality images.

The Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope (DKIST), the largest ground-based solar telescope in the world with a mirror diameter of four meters, already saw the first light in December 2019 and plans to process about six petabytes of information per year. With the recent launch of groundbreaking missions to the Sun, the Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter, the amount of data carrying useful knowledge will only increase.

See full Archive of science and technology news, new electronics

All languages of this page

Home page | Library | Articles | Website map | Site Reviews