All over the world, people are suffering more because their immune systems can't discern between healthy cells from invader microorganisms. Immune defenses against disease that used to protect themselves are now attacking their organs and tissues.
International research is being undertaken to counter this trend. This includes a project at London's Francis Crick Institute where two world experts, James Lee, and Carola Vinuesa, have formed distinct research groups to determine the causes of autoimmune diseases.
Lee revealed to the Observer the extent to which auto-immune cases has grown over the past 40 years, particularly in Western countries. We are seeing a few cases in countries where we had never had such illnesses before.
For example for instance, the Middle East and East Asia are the regions that have the highest percentage of cases of inflammatory intestinal disease. They'd never heard of the disease prior to.
Autoimmune diseases can vary from type 1 diabetes, to multiple sclerosis as well as chronic fatigue syndrome and Rheumatoid Arthritis. In all cases the immune system has its wires crossed, and it turns on healthy tissue instead of infective agents.
The conditions have been identified by at least 4 million people living in the UK. A few sufferers could be affected by multiple. It is estimated that autoimmune conditions are rising by three to nine percent per year worldwide. Numerous researchers believe that environmental factors play a major factor in this growth.
Human genetics hasn't changed in the past few years, according to Lee who was based at Cambridge University. There must be a change out there and it's increasing our predisposition to autoimmune disease.
Vinuesa who used to be located at the Australian National University, endorsed the idea. She highlighted the changes in the way people eat as more nations adopted western-style eating habits and people ate much more fast-food.
Vinuesa stated that the lack of essential ingredients in fast-food food can result in a decrease in the intake of vital nutrients, like fiber.
The changes in microbiomes can lead to autoimmune disorders. There are more than 100 different types.
Both researchers said that certain people are more prone to developing these diseases. These include celiac and lupus, which can trigger swelling and inflammation and lead to damage to many organs including the heart.
"If you don't have certain genetic susceptibility it is unlikely that you will develop an autoimmune disease, no matter how many Big Macs consume," said Vinuesa. "There's not much we can do to stop the worldwide expansion of fast food chains. Instead, we are focusing on understanding the genetic factors that underlie autoimmune disorders and why some individuals are susceptible while others Check out are not. That's the level at which we intend to tackle this issue."
Scientists have the capability to spot tiny variations in DNA between large numbers of individuals. This is made possible by the use of the development of new methods. This allows us to discover common genetic patterns in those suffering from autoimmune diseases.
Lee claims that, although we had the technology for sequencing DNA to an extent up to a point however, it was not possible. Inflammatory bowel diseases were only one of the variants that we could identify at the time I started my study. More than 250 are now recognized.
Lee and Vinuesa have been doing such research since the beginning. Their research aims to uncover the various kinds of diseases that doctors are currently researching and to discover the genetic mechanisms which lead to these types of diseases. If you look at some autoimmune diseases - for example, lupus - it has been made clear that there are a variety of different forms of them, that may be caused by different genetic pathways, Vinuesa explained. If you're trying to determine the most effective treatment for your condition, this could be an issue.
While there are a myriad of effective new therapies in development however, we're not sure which people they ought to be offered to. This is because we aren't able to pinpoint the exact type of their illness. That's the main goal of the research into autoimmune diseases. To determine the most effective treatment, it is necessary to understand how to classify and categorize patients.
Lee also stressed that surging cases of autoimmune illnesses across the world meant new treatment and medications were required more than ever before. There are no current treatments for autoimmune disorders, which often occur in young peoplewho are trying to find their first job, graduate from school, and raise their families.
The result is that more people are going to need surgeryor be required to receive regular injections for the remainder of their lives. It can be devastating for patients as well as a huge pressure on healthcare. It is urgent to discover new, more effective treatments.
Rheumatoid is an auto-immune condition. This means that the immune system is attacking healthy tissue. But, we don't know what triggers it.
The antibodies that your immune system makes to attack bacteria and viruses are essential to fight infections.
If you suffer from rheumatoid disease, your immune system misdirectly sends antibodies towards the joint's lining, where they attack adjacent tissue.
This rheumatoid arthritis treatment guidelines causes the thin synovium layer of cells that covers your joints to become painful. In addition, it releases chemicals that could cause injury to your nearby.
bones
Cartilage, the connective tissue that connects bones.
The tendons are the tissue which connects muscle to bone
Ligaments - The tissues that connects cartilage and bone
If the issue is not treated, it can gradually result in the loss of joint alignment and form. Eventually, it can ruin the joint completely.
Many theories on the reason why the immune system attacks joints have been proposed including an infection being the trigger, but none of these theories have been proven.
Possible risk factors
You could be at greater risk for developing rheumatoid arthritis if you do not take these steps:
Your genes - There's some evidence that Rheumatoid arthritis is passed down through families. However, the probability of it passing on to a child is very low as genes play a limited part in the disease.
Hormones The autoimmune disease Rheumatoid is more prevalent than ever before for women, possibly because of the effects of estrogen on the body. However, this link is not proven.
Smoking cigarettes - There is evidence that those who smoke are more likely develop rheumatoidarthritis.