In her PhD-thesis Begona Diosdado showed that the intestinal damage caused by gluten in coeliac disease occurs because the intestinal cells are not able to reach their complete functionality and their location.
Coeliac disease (CD) is a chronic intolerance to a dietary protein called gluten. The gluten protein is present in common cereals such as wheat, barley and rye, and it is needed to prepare the derivate products such as bread or pasta. CD only occurs in individuals that carry certain altered genes. The work performed in this project aimed to identify which genes drive the development of the disease by comparing the expression of the genes in the intestine of coeliac patients to non-coeliacs.
This new knowledge will help the search for susceptibility genes in CD. Moreover, the integration of the genetic and genomic information will be key to developing new diagnostic tools for identifying individuals at risk, and to finding new avenues for therapeutic intervention in coeliac disease.
Thesis: “The puzzel of coeliac disease: pieces of the molecular pathogenesis”
PhD-advisor: prof. dr. Cisca Wijmenga
21 March 2006 02:30 PM, Academiegebouw, Domplein 29, Utrecht