Nanoparticles help cure celiac disease

Celiac disease is a hereditary autoimmune disease that causes damage to the intestinal microvilli when gluten is consumed. As a result, the efficiency of absorption of nutrients is reduced, which leads to diarrhea, abdominal pain and chronic fatigue, Hightech + reported.

However, researchers from Northwestern University plan to rectify this situation. According to New Atlas, recently they have not successfully completed the second phase of a clinical trial of nanoparticle celiac disease therapy.

The new approach is based on a simple idea - to make the immune system tolerant to gluten. To do this, gliadin glycoprotein, which is part of gluten, is loaded into tiny nanocapsules. It is responsible for the development of an autoimmune reaction.

During the test, participants received two injections of nanoparticles. Seven days after the second treatment, the researchers tested their response to gluten. During the first three days, participants received 12g of gluten daily, and for the next 11 days - 6g.

According to scientists, patients from the treated group tolerated gluten intake much better. The concentration of markers of inflammation in them was 90% lower than in the control group. Although only 34 people took part in the trials, their result was the first evidence of the effectiveness of treatment in humans.

Following the third phase of clinical trials, the FDA may expedite approval of nanoparticle treatment of celiac disease. Takeda pharmaceutical company has already received a license for advanced therapy.

The authors note that nanocapsules can also be used to treat other autoimmune diseases, including allergies, type 1 diabetes, and multiple sclerosis.