The gut microbial ecosystem plays an important role in the pathogenesis of liver diseases. However, the association of microbial community structure with the severity of liver dysfunction is not completely understood.
The relevance of intestinal dysbiosis in liver transplant candidates
Purpose: The optimization of procedure evaluating the severity of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) using non-invasive methods.
Patients/methods: One hundred and nine children with IBD hospitalized in gastroenterology ward between 2009 and 2011 participated in the study. Activity of the disease was evaluated in each patient. Concentration of three inflammatory markers: dimeric form of tumor pyruvate kinase (M2-PK), calprotectin and lactoferrin was evaluated using immunoenzymatic tests.
Results: Existence of a significant correlation between the faecal level of all tested markers and the stage of clinical activity of the disease was demonstrated in children with IBD, both in Crohn’s disease (M2-PK p < 0.01; calprotectin p = 0.005; lactoferrin p < 0.01) and in ulcerative colitis group (M2-PK p < 0.01; calprotectin p = 0.004; lactoferrin p < 0.01). A significant difference in the level of markers was found between children with unclassified colitis and the group of patients with ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease, but there was no difference between Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. The increase in the level of one marker correlated with increasing level of other markers (p < 0.01). Faecal markers seem to correlate well with majority of indicators of inflammatory condition in blood.
Conclusions: Measuring M2-PK, lactoferrin and calprotectin levels in faeces seem to be a useful indicator of the level of disease activity in children with IBD.
The role of IgG hypersensitivity in the pathogenesis and therapy of depressive disorders
Depressive episodes are associated not only with changes in neurotransmission in the central nervous system, but also may lead to structural changes in the brain through neuroendocrine, inflammatory, and immunological mechanisms. The aim of this article is to present a new hypothesis connecting the
inflammatory theory of depression with IgG food hypersensitivity and leaky gut syndrome.
This new potential pathway that may mediate the pathogenesis of depression implies the existence of subsequent developmental stages. Overproduction of zonulin triggered, for example, by gliadin through activation of the epidermal growth factor receptor and protease-activated receptor causes loosening of the tight junction barrier and an increase in permeability of the gut wall (‘leaky gut’).
This results in a process allowing larger molecules that would normally stay in the gut to cross into the bloodstream and in the induction of IgG-dependent food sensitivity. This condition causes an increased immune response and consequently induces the release of proinflammatory cytokines, which in turn may lead to the development of depressive symptoms.
It seems advisable to assess the intestinal permeability using as a marker, for example, zonulin and specific IgG concentrations against selected nutritional components in patients with depression. In the case of increased IgG concentrations, the implementation of an elimination–rotation diet may prove to be an effective method of reducing inflammation. This new paradigm in the pathogenesis of depressive disorders linking leaky gut, IgG-dependent food sensitivity, inflammation, and depression is promising, but still needs further studies to confirm this theory.
The gut microbial ecosystem plays an important role in the pathogenesis of liver diseases. However, the association of microbial …
Purpose: The optimization of procedure evaluating the severity of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) using non-invasive methods. …
The role of IgG hypersensitivity in the pathogenesis and therapy of depressive disorders Depressive episodes are associated …
