What is type 1 diabetes?
In type 1 diabetes, the immune system destroys the insulin-producing β-cells in the pancreas due to a defect. Because the amount of insulin decreases, the body can no longer utilise the vital energy source glucose. The cells starve, the metabolism collapses, the blood sugar level rises, ketone bodies and sugar appear in the urine. The otherwise very narrow pH range of the blood shifts into the acidic range. This process can be life-threatening.
What is molecular mimicry?
Molecular mimicry describes the observation in pathogens that their proteins and carbohydrates partially adapt their structures to those of their host in the course of an immune invasion. These partially adapted molecules are therefore less recognised by the immune system because similar or identical substances also occur in the host. As the host organism does not normally produce antibodies against its own molecules, these components of the pathogen are not recognised as antigens.
How are molecular mimicry, type 1 diabetes and autoimmune diseases connected?
Leaky gut syndrome is an important cause of Autoimmune diseases. When the body functions optimally, there is no leaky gut syndrome.
The intestinal wall is impermeable to large molecules with antigenic properties. An exception to this is during breastfeeding, when the mother's milk proteins (lactoglobulin, lactalbumin and immunoglobulins) can pass through the intestinal wall. This process serves to build up maternal immunity in the offspring of mammals, including humans.
This immunobiological disorder is known as autoimmunity. However, the name of the disease does not describe the actual process, as the body does not turn against itself without a trigger. Almost 4 % of the world's population is affected by one of more than 80 different autoimmune diseases, of which type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, Crohn's disease, psoriasis and scleroderma are the most common. The underlying cause of autoimmune diseases is a leaky gut.
What causes leaky gut syndrome?
The integrity of the human intestinal wall is crucial for the homeostasis of the body, the maintenance of balance and optimal immunity. It enables the absorption of nutrients and protects the body from the penetration of infectious microorganisms and allergens from food. This barrier, the protective barrier, is not present from birth, but develops from birth until the end of breastfeeding, around the age of two. This is why breastfeeding and the protective effect of breast milk are so important.
The integrity of the intestinal wall can be impaired in the course of life. The tight connections between the intestinal epithelial cells, which ensure the tight closure, are damaged. This loosening makes the intestinal wall permeable to large molecules.
Causes that trigger the production of zonulin in the intestinal wall (zonulin loosens the tight connection between the intestinal epithelial cells):
- Gliadin in unfermented gluten (Sourdough bread vs. rye bread) (Elaine Leonard Puppa 2015)
- Xenobiotics (foreign substances) that are ingested with food, in particular Residues of the herbicide glyphosate in food through genetically modified plants. The effects affect almost everyone today. When glyphosate is present in food at a level of 0.1 mg/kg, it triggers the production of zonulin (Anthony Samsel and Stephanie Seneff 2013).
- Glyphosate in a concentration of just 0.1 mg/kg has negative effects on the intestinal flora. The intestinal microbiome changes. The amount of toxins from LPS (gram-negative) bacteria in the gut increases. Short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) are reduced (Drago, Sandro et al., 2006).
- Stress is also an important factor in the development of leaky gut. The loss of the protective function can increase the permeability of the intestine.
Glyphosate (N-phosphonomethyl glycine) and type 1 diabetes
Myosin is the protein of the muscle in which the contraction of the 699 amino acids is caused by glycine.
Glyphosate and its first degradation product AMPA [aminomethylphosphonic acid] are in principle derivatives of glycine, an important amino acid that is required in many places in the body. Glycine and glyphosate or glycine and AMPA compete for binding sites, e.g. on cells or for incorporation into certain proteins.
This mechanism can impair muscle function in all three muscle types (cardiac muscles, skeletal muscles, smooth muscles). In a leaky gut, the tensile strength of the smooth muscle fibres of the gut, which contract the tight junctions between the tight junctions, is reduced. This disruption of the myosin motor also plays a role in the development of leaky gut syndrome.
Other risk factors for type 1 diabetes
Other risk factors are various intestinal diseases (Crohn's disease, coeliac disease, irritable bowel syndrome) and autoimmune and inflammatory diseases such as asthma, multiple sclerosis and chronic fatigue syndrome.
Along the gut-brain axis, it can also play a role in depression, anxiety and schizophrenia. The histamine produced in the gut can also contribute to its development.
What is mimicry in type 1 diabetes?
Cow's milk contains beta-lactoglobulin, a whey protein that is not found in human breast milk. There is increasing evidence that food antigens (mainly molecular mimicry due to shared epitopes) are triggers of autoimmune diseases. The development of antibodies associated with type 1 diabetes can also be triggered by β-lactoglobulin and lactoalbumin (Vânia Vieira Borba etal. 2020).
Causes of type 1 diabetes
After milk feeding, the intestine closes. The "tight junction" connections, which close the gaps between the intestinal epithelial cells (enterocytes), are contracted by smooth muscle fibres in the enterocytes. This closes the intestinal wall. This happens in children from the age of two.
One of the most important molecular mimics is beta-lactoglobulin, which is contained in the whey protein of cow's milk but is not found in breast milk. Epidemiological studies have shown that the consumption of cow's milk is involved in the development of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM). The whey protein content of cow's milk and the immune mechanism of antibodies against bovine serum albumin (BSA) lead to the destruction of the insulin-producing beta cells of the pancreas. Several studies on infant nutrition have shown a causal relationship between the timing of the introduction of infant formula containing cow protein and the risk of developing type 1 diabetes mellitus.
The classic trigger for type 1 autoimmune diabetes is fitness cereals (moist, hot, steamed cereals soaked in milk sweetened with fructose). There is a close link between the simultaneous consumption of gluten and whey proteins, whereby the gliadin contained in gluten triggers the production of zonulin in the intestinal wall. The tight junction closure is cancelled and the intestinal wall becomes permeable.
The role of lipocalinins
β-Lactoglobulin is an important lipocalin protein in cow's milk. It is similar to the human glycodelin protein (PP14), which is a T-cell modulator. Anti-β-lactoglobulin cross-reacts with glycodelin. The intestinal wall of newborns does not close completely, or in the case of leaky gut, the intestine is penetrated by β-lactoglobulin from cow's milk. The antibody formed against β-lactoglobulin damages the human protein glycodelin, which plays a role in the regulation of T cells. This destroys the beta cells (Marcia F. Goldfarb 2008).
The role of flour bleach and alloxan
Flour made from freshly milled wheat has a pale yellow colour due to its carotenoid content. In unfermented processing, the carotenoids cause fresh flour to become sticky, which causes problems during processing and baking.
This is not a problem with bread and baked goods produced using sourdough technology. During storage, these carotenoids are broken down by oxidative reactions during natural flour ageing. The result is a white, soft and crumbly flour that is better suited to the production of modern, non-fermented baked goods with additives. To accelerate these natural processes, the food industry uses chemical methods to improve both colour and rising. Commonly used bleaching agents include benzoyl peroxide, chlorine gas, chlorine dioxide, nitrosyl chloride and nitrogen oxides (Chittrakorn et al., 2014).
Baked goods with chloride oxide
A more recent problem of food contamination is the bleaching of flour in commonly consumed baked goods with chloride oxide.
In fast food restaurants, so-called self-bleached wheat flour is used to make hamburger buns. Bleaching with chloride oxide produces alloxan as a by-product, which has a toxic effect on the beta cells of the pancreas.
In the USA, chlorine and hypochlorites are considered safe compounds for food processing. Chlorine is included in the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) list of food additives. These compounds break peptide bonds and degrade aromatic amino acids. These oxidation reactions can alter many flour components and lead to the formation of toxic products such as alloxan (Idaho Observer, 2005).
Alloxan causes insulin-dependent diabetes, also known as "alloxan diabetes".
Alloxan is a well-known and widely used substance that causes insulin-dependent diabetes in experimental animals due to its toxic effect on pancreatic beta cells (Isaac F. Federiuk et al., 2004). This hidden association is not addressed by food science, but we can call it a double standard! Does alloxan cause insulin resistance in laboratory rats but not in children?
How can type 1 autoimmune diabetes be prevented?
If you suffer from type 1 diabetes, you should eliminate gluten and dairy products from your diet.
Genetically modified foods that damage the intestinal flora should be removed from the diet. Meat and liver from grazing animals, poultry and pork from non-industrialised farming as well as sea fish from catches (FAO: 21, 27, 34;) should be eaten.
The best way to keep the good Intestinal bacteriathat produce butyrate, is the consumption of fresh, young leafy vegetables and Dietary fibre with high Pectincontent (rocket, all types of lettuce, parsley and celery leaves, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, asparagus, mushrooms).
Carbohydrate intake should be kept as low as possible, up to 20-30 grams per day is acceptable.
Literature
Anthony Samsel and Stephanie Seneff: Glyphosate, pathways to modern diseases II: Celiac sprue and gluten intolerance Interdiscip Toxicol. 2013 Dec; 6(4): 159-184. published online 2013 Dec. doi: 10.2478/intox-2013-0026 PMCID: PMC3945755 PMID: 24678255
Drago, Sandro & Asmar, Ramzi & Pierro, Mariarosaria & Clemente, Maria & Tripathi, Amit & Sapone, Anna & Thakar, Manjusha & Iacono, Giuseppe & Carroccio, Antonio & D'Agate, Cinzia & Not, Tarcisio & Zampini, Lucia & Catassi, Carlo & Fasano, Alessio. (2006). Gliadin, zonulin and gut permeability: Effects on celiac and non-celiac intestinal mucosa and intestinal cell lines. Scandinavian journal of gastroenterology. 41. 408-19. 10.1080/0036552050023533
Elaine Leonard Puppa, Bruce Greenwald, Eric Goldberg, Anthony Guerrerio, Alessio Fasano: Effect of Gliadin on Permeability of Intestinal Biopsy Explants from Celiac Disease Patients and Patients with Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity. Nutrients 2015, 7(3), 1565-1576; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu7031565
Idaho Observer: Bleaching agent in flour linked to diabetes [WWW Document], 2005. URL.
Isaac F Federiuk, Heather M Casey, Matthew J Quinn, Michael D Wood, W Kenneth Ward: Induction of type-1 diabetes mellitus in laboratory rats by use of alloxan: route of administration, pitfalls, and insulin treatment National Library of Medicine Pub Med. 2004 Jun; 54 (3): 252-7.
Matthew F. Cusick, Jane E. Libbey, and Robert S.: Molecular Mimicry as a Mechanism of Autoimmune Disease. Clin Rev Allergy Immunol. 2012; 42(1): 102-111.Published online 2011 Nov 19. doi: 10.1007/s12016-011-8294-7. PMCID: PMC3266166. NIHMSID: NIHMS349752. PMID: 22095454
Marcia F. Goldfarb: Relation of Time of Introduction of Cow Milk Protein to an Infant and Risk of Type-1 Diabetes Mellitus Cite this: J, Proteome Res. 2008, 7, 5, 2165-2167. Publication Date:April 15, 2008. https://doi.org/10.1021/pr800041d
Sasivimon Chittrakorn, Dru Earls ,Finlay MacRitchie (2014): Ozonation as an alternative to chlorination for soft wheat flours Journal of Cereal Science, Volume 60, Issue 1, July 2014, Pages 217-221 Journal of Cereal Science
Shakila Banu.M, Sasikala.P (2012): Alloxan in refined flour: A Diabetic concern. Professor and Head, Department of Food Processing and Preservation, Technology Faculty of Engineering, Avinashilingam University For Women, Coimbatore.
Szollár Lajos: Kórélettan. Semmelweis Kiadó, Budapest. 2005.
Vânia Vieira Borba, Aaron Lerner , Torsten Matthias, Yehuda Shoenfeld: Bovine Milk Proteins as a Trigger for Autoimmune Diseases: Myth or Reality?
International Journal of Celiac Disease. 2020, 8(1), 10-21. DOI: 10.12691/ijcd-8-1-3 Received January 11, 2020; Revised February 20, 2020; Accepted April 27, 2020
Vita Giaccone, Gaetano Cammilleri, Vita Di Stefano, Rosa Pitonzo, Antonio Vella, Andrea Pulvirenti, Gianluigi Maria Lo Dico, Vincenzo Ferrantelli, Andrea Macaluso (2017): First report on the presence of Alloxan in bleached flour by LC-MS/MS method Journal of Cereal Science, Volume 77, September 2017, Pages 120-125
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