On metabolism and the immune system


#1

To treat some diseases, researchers are putting immune cells on a diet
Actually looks rather more like trying to put keto in a pill, but interesting to those with auto-immune issues, and a good breakdown of the science.


(Siobhan) #2

My biggest issue with this is that for auto-immune diseases we assume that the immune cells are reacting to nothing, or reacting inappropriately to something. Perhaps sometimes that is true - I honestly don’t know.
My question is, what if they are reacting appropriately to some damage we don’t know the source of yet?

I believe people with IBS, crohns, etc sometimes have success with a ketogenic diet. Wouldn’t that imply there’s a possibility that the immune cells are reacting to something in the diet and causing issues - or something else we haven’t considered?
If so, what would happen if we essentially cripple a totally appropriate immune response we don’t fully understand?

That’s the sort of things I think about.
I’ve seen plenty of cases of assuming the body is dysfunctional when it turns out to be functioning just fine. The environment turns out to be the problem.


#3

I’d agree, going keto often involves giving up a lot of processed food, likely the cause of immune responses and consequent chronic inflammation. I was being a bit cynical about keto in a pill, but targeting the metabolic responses of the immune system is likely to be better than outright suppressing it (which current drugs do, and things like metformin not so much)
I thought it was also interesting that activated T cells have increased glucose consumption, while the regulatory T cells, that down regulate inflammation, are fond of fatty acids.