What celiac
disease is:
 |
| The lining of the small intestine after the immune system has attacked the gluten |
Description of the basic
cause and symptoms of celiac disease:
Celiac disease is
caused by the body’s own immune system, which reacts and attacks the gluten
found in the gut. The disease can be caused partly environmentally and partly
by genetics and occurs more often in people who already suffer from another
disease. It can develop spontaneously and can be unnoticed by the person who
has got it. The villi in the small intestine are damaged and thus nutrients can
be absorbed properly anymore. This damage in the intestine leads to symptoms
such as
·
weight
loss due to malnutrition caused by the poor absorption.
·
diarrhoea
and abdominal pain and swelling due to the inflammation.
·
food
intolerance
·
inflammation
increases the risk of gastrointestinal cancers (e. g. cancer of oesophagus or
small intestine)
·
iron
deficiency due to lack of red blood cells
·
vitamin
deficiencies
·
low bone
mineral density
·
visible
affects: enamel of teeth, chronic fatigue, joint pain, poor growth, delayed puberty,
miscarriage and infertility
·
Neurological
symptoms: Migraine, depression, ADHD, epilepsy
Explanation of the effect
of celiac disease on intestinal villus and how this leads to its symptoms:
The villus is inflamed
and thus shortened and flattened so that nutrients cannot pass through it
anymore. This causes the cells to be more sensitive so that cancer can be
developed. It also means that nutrients such as vitamins cannot be taken up
into the blood, so that vitamin 12 and folate deficiency anaemia can be
developed. Iron deficiency also causes a lack of red blood cells, leading to
other health problems, connected to oxygen transport.
Description of the effect
of genetics on a person’s predisposition to celiac disease:
There is a genetic
predisposition for the development of the disease and first degree relatives
have a 4-15 % chance to inherite the disease, but the inheritance pattern is
unknown. The disease seems tobe connected to the disposition of the genetic of
a human containing specific variants of the HLA-DQA1 and the HLA-DQB1 genes.
These are human leukocyte antigen complexes (HLA). They bond by proteins called
antigen-binding DQaß heterodimer, which is a complex that is on the surface of
immune cells and attaches to antibodies, which it recognizes as invading.
How celiac disease
is currently tested for:
Australian scientists
found a method to test the blood for celiac disease in 2014. Generally, people
who are genetically predisposed to have the disease are advised to be screened.
The diagnosing nowadays involves the taking of the blood sample to search for
antibodies that are specific to that disease. When they are found, a biopsy is
conducted whereby an endoscope(a tube with light) is passed down the mouth to
the small intestine and a tiny biopsy
tool will take samples of the small intestine.
Sources:
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=picture+of+coeliac+disease&espv=2&biw=1242&bih=606&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiBtsT-iZfPAhUjI8AKHcgnBggQ_AUIBigB#imgrc=ypRXZzd0mYwyCM%3A
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