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Query: UMLS:C0021831 (enteropathy)
 4,403 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The intestinal mucosal immune defense mechanisms involve both humoral and cellular immunity. The prominence of suppressor/cytotoxic T lymphocytes in the epithelial layer suggests that these interepithelial lymphocytes play a role in defense against infections within this layer. Secretory IgA is overwhelmingly the major humoral immune response along the gastrointestinal tract and along other mucosal surfaces (respiratory tract, mammary glands, salivary glands, and lacrimal glands). While the functions of secretory IgA are incompletely understood, it is clear that it prevents attachment of microorganisms and toxins (cholera toxin, shiga toxin, etc.) to the surface epithelial cells. Furthermore, secretory IgA may collaborate with eosinophils or killer lymphocytes to mediate cytotoxic reactions against enteropathogens. By learning more about the mucosal immune response, we should be able to understand the relationship between the lamina propria plasmacytosis in inflammatory bowel disease and the increased number of interepithelial lymphocytes that we see in gluten-sensitive enteropathy and the underlying pathogenic mechanisms.
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PMID:Intestinal mucosal immune defense mechanisms. 328 83

The development of autoimmunity to tissue transglutaminase (TGase 2) is a striking feature of coeliac disease, an enteropathy that develops in genetically susceptible individuals upon exposure to dietary gluten. IgA anti-TGase 2 autoantibodies are present in at least 98% of coeliac patients on a gluten-containing diet and provide a valuable tool for the diagnosis of the disorder. During disease development, the formation of TGase 2-gliadin complexes through TGase 2 activity appears to be central for B-cell epitope spreading from gliadin to TGase 2. However, the potential role of an immune response against TGase 2 in the pathogenesis of coeliac disease and for the development of the intestinal lesion remains unclear. Recently, an inhibitory effect of anti-TGase 2 autoantibodies from coeliac patients on TGase 2 activity in vitro has been described. Here, we report that a cellular and humoral response against TGase 2 can be induced in TGase 2 (-/-) and wildtype mice on a C57BL/6 background by s.c. immunization with human recombinant or guinea pig TGase 2 in complete Freund's adjuvant. Immunized wildtype, but not TGase 2 (-/-) mice develop periductal lymphocytic infiltrates in lacrimal glands. Although no intestinal lesions were found, this observation lends support to the concept that the development of autoimmunity against TGase 2 is a pathological event that might ultimately lead to organ damage.
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PMID:The role of the immune response against tissue transglutaminase in the pathogenesis of coeliac disease. 1500 83