Edited by Doctor Alessio Dini
Today we focus our attention on a recent discovery by Italian researchers, the pRPQ protein, why can it be important?
Let's start by giving some names.
Celiac disease is a "permanent autoimmune food intolerance to gliadin, an alcohol soluble component of gluten. Gluten is a protein complex (gliadin plus glutenin) contained in cereals such as wheat, spelled, rye, kamut and barley.
It is easy to understand that in subjects suffering from celiac disease the administration of these cereals has a toxic role and leads to the development of an inflammatory reaction which over time damages the intestinal mucosa causing atrophy of the villi.
Celiac disease generally appears in childhood, typically manifests itself with weight loss, nutritional deficiencies, anemia and fatigue (resulting from nutrient absorption defects) and gastrointestinal disorders such as dyspepsia, digestive difficulties, inappetence, diarrhea.
In the forms that appear in adulthood, these symptoms may be absent, be very nuanced, or even replaced or accompanied by less specific manifestations, such as lack of strength, irritability and nervousness.
Let's talk about the discovery now.
Researchers from the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS) have isolated a decapeptide (molecule made up of 10 amino acids) within the sequence of the gluten fraction, called pRPQ, which counteracts the toxic effect of gluten itself.
This peptide is naturally present in gluten, even if in small quantities, so it is not able to counteract the toxic action of the other components. In vitro, on cell cultures and on fragments of intestinal mucosa obtained from celiac people, it has been seen that by administering the pRPQ peptide in concentrations similar to those of gliadin, no lesions typical of celiac disease occur.
This is therefore an important step for Italian research, which opens us to new horizons in the prevention and treatment of celiac disease. We can reasonably state that, if the results obtained in vitro are confirmed by further in vivo studies, even people with celiac disease will be able to reintroduce into their diet those cereals and their derivatives hitherto considered toxic, without incurring any problem.
Being a natural substance, it is also conceivable the creation of a wheat that has high quantities of the peptide, able to naturally counteract the action of the toxic fractions of gluten. The hypothesis is not science fiction because the Italian researchers have also identified the " gene "that induces the synthesis of pRPQ, therefore, at least in theory, with a relatively simple genetic modification it could be possible to create grains that express high quantities of pRPQ and that therefore counteract the toxic sequences of gliadin, thus obtaining a wheat suitable for" food for everyone, without modifying their nutritional and organoleptic characteristics.
According to the Italian Celiac Association (AIC), the incidence of this intolerance in Italy is one case every 100-150 people. Celiacs, therefore, could be about 400,000, but only 35,000 have been diagnosed. Every year, according to the AIC, five thousand new diagnoses are made and every year 2,800 new celiacs are born, with an annual increase of 9%.
These data give us a clear picture of the importance of this great little discovery made in Italy.
