Today I received an email from one of my highly educated, well researched clients.
She came across an article on Gluten Free Society .com, and was seeking my input
on the “validity / quality” of the information.
In a nutshell the article and the study it referred to seems to present the perspective
that serious health consequences are not associated with “Gluten Sensitivity” (GS),
but only with true “Celiac Disease” (CD).
They state that only Celiac Disease is associated with other autoimmune dysfunction
and disease or more severe issues like cancer. I would have to challenge this opinion
in a bitter fight, since I know that I have what are considered the Non-Celiac-Gluten-
Sensitivity genes. (The HLA-DQ genes 2 or 8 are considered the Celiac Gluten-Sensitivity
genes, in that most people who develop Celiac Disease have at least one gene of the 2 or the
8 variety). Having Non-Celiac-Gluten-Sensitivity genes simply means it is more likely that
you will not develop “Celiac Disease” as defined by 1) testing positive for certain antibodies,
and 2) testing positive to a biopsy of the small intestine (showing atrophy of the small finger-
like projections called villi).
Both of these tests commonly used in traditional medicine have several shortcomings. If you
are interested in additional details on how these test produce many “false negatives” I would
be happy to go into detail in another post, or directly with you. For now I will stay focused on
the above mentioned article / study.
The study goes on to say that the “Gluten Sensitive subjects do not test positive for transglutaminase…..”
This is a very interesting statement since just yesterday Cyrex Labs – the true GOLD STANDARD for
gluten testing and research announced that they are adding two additional transglutaminase tests to
their packages. Highlighting the fact that there is indeed more than one transglutaminase!
Transglutaminase is best known for its connection to Celiac Disease in that gluten stimulates and an
anti-transglutaminase antibody (ATA), which leads to the autoimmune attack on the gastrointestinal tract.
Even Wiki mentions that the common transglutaminase (TG) that is associated with Celiac Disease and the
gut is TG2 – which is expressed in epithelial cells of the gastrointestinal tract.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tissue_transglutaminase
The other transglutaminase enzymes are tTG3 (dermis) and tTG6 (neuronal). It is well known that there are
several neurological and skin disorders associated with Celiac disease AS WELL AS non-Celiac disease gluten-reactivity.
I personally do not test positive for tTG2 but do have anti-bodies for BOTH tTG3 and tTG6!
On January 17, 2012 the Wall Street Journal published an article A Gut Check For Many Ailments where they state the following:
“New research indicates problems in the gut may cause problems in the brain, just as a mental ailment, such as anxiety, can upset the stomach”
So, what do I say to my confused well informed patient about the “accuracy / quality of the info” of a study performed
by Anna Sapone, Karen M Lammers, Vincenzo Casolaro, Marcella Cammarota, Maria T Giuliano, Mario De Rosa,
Rosita Stefanile, Giuseppe Mazzarella, Carlo Tolone, Maria I Russo, Pasquale Esposito, Franca Ferraraccio, Maria Carteni
Gabriele Riegler, Laura de Magistris, Alessio Fasano published in BMC Medicine 2011, 9:23 doi:10.1186/1741-7015-9-23?
I would have to say there is still a lot of information that is not commonly well known out there, and perhaps sometimes there
are people who have agendas to publish research that is in line with some other theory….. However, you cannot lie with chemistry,
and you cannot lie with physiology. It is what it is. If there is more than one transglutaminase (which there is) and only one is tested,
it might not be prudent to make generalized conclusions as if other molecules in the human body did not exist…
Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tissue_transglutaminase
http://www.glutenfreesociety.org/gluten-free-society-blog/the-many-heads-of-gluten-sensitivity/
http://www.glutenfreesociety.org/wp-content/uploads/Dr-Fasano-BMC-Study.pdf
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204468004577164732944974356.html
Cyrex Labs – Important Array 3 and 4 Announcement, February 7, 2012