All over the world, people are suffering more because their immune systems can't distinguish between healthy cells from invader microorganisms. Instead of protecting them from illness their organs and tissues are attacked by these same defenses.
Research efforts across the globe are accelerating to combat this trend. One instance is the London Francis Crick Institute initiative in which James Lee and Carola Vinesa who are world-renowned experts in this field, have established distinct research groups that will assist in determining the exact causes of autoimmune disorders.
Lee told the Observer that autoimmune illnesses began to rise around 40 years ago in western countries. We are seeing new cases in countries where the diseases were not seen before.
The Middle East and East Asia have seen the largest increase in cases of inflammatory bowel diseases. Prior to that, they had never had any experience with the disease.
Autoimmune diseases vary from type 1 diabetes to multiple MS as well as chronic fatigue syndrome and Rheumatoid Arthritis. Each situation is distinct. In each instance the immune system is crossing its wires, and it switches to healthy tissues, not infectious agents.
At least four million people living in the UK suffer from these diseases. Some may be suffering more than one. In the world, it is believed that the amount of autoimmune diseases is growing by anywhere between 3 and 9 percent per year. Many researchers believe that environmental factors are the primary cause of this growth.
Lee who worked previously at Cambridge University, said that the human genetics of human beings hasn't changed in the past decades. There must be something outside that is causing our predisposition for autoimmune disease.
Vinuesa was the person who backed this notion. Vinuesa was previously at the Australian National University. She highlighted the changes in diet as more countries adopted western-style eating habits and people ate much more fast-food.
Foods that are processed and fast-food-based lack important ingredients, such as fibre, and evidence indicates that this change affects the microbiome of a person - the collection of micro-organisms that reside within our guts and that play a key role in regulating various body functions, Vinuesa explained.
The changes in our microbiomes then create autoimmune conditions, of which there are more than 100 kinds.
Both researchers stressed that there are individual susceptibilities to the diseases. It includes celiac as well as Lupus. It triggers inflammation, swelling, and may cause harm and even death to various organs, such as the heart.
Vinuesa says that an individual who doesn't suffer from a genetic predisposition will not develop an autoimmune condition, regardless of the amount of Big Macs they eat. "There's not much we can do to stop the global spread of fast food franchises. Instead we're trying to discover the basic genetic factors that lead to autoimmune diseases and make some individuals susceptible, while others are not. We are trying to address the issue at the level of."
Modern technology has made it possible to spot tiny differences in the DNA of large numbers of individuals. This is how it is possible to identify common genetic patterns in those with an auto-immune disease.
Lee said that we did not have the equipment to sequence DNA prior to. However, now we have the capability to sequence DNA on large scales, which has made a huge difference in our lives. We only knew about half a dozen different variants of DNA that can trigger intestinal inflammation when I began my research. More than 250 are now recognized.
This is at the core of the work done by Lee and Vinuesa. They aim to discover how different genetic pathways function and to discover the different types of diseases researchers are currently studying. Vinuesa said that there could be many versions of some diseases that are autoimmune, such as Lupus. It is important to understand that this has consequences when trying to find the correct treatment.
While there are a myriad of efficient new therapies currently in development however, we're not sure what patients they should be given to. This is due to the fact that we do not know the specific type of condition. This is a major goal in research into autoimmune diseases. We must learn to categorize and stratify patients, so that we can provide them with the appropriate therapy.
Lee said that the increasing rate of autoimmune illnesses across the globe arthritis rheumatoid doctors near me meant that innovative drugs and treatments were urgently required. According to Lee, currently there is no cure for autoimmune diseases. They typically occur in young adults trying to complete their studies and secure a job.
It means that a growing number of people will have undergo surgery or receive regular injections. This can be extremely stressful for patients, and also a huge strain on the health services. We require new and efficient treatments.
Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune condition, which means it's due to the immune system attacking healthy tissue in the body. This is an unanswered question.
Your immune system naturally produces antibodies to combat viruses and bacteria.
If you suffer from rheumatoid arthritis, your immune system misdirectly issuing antibodies towards the lining of your joint which is where they attack the tissues surrounding it.
This causes the thin cell-like layer covering your Click here joints (synovium) to become irritated and painful this releases chemicals that cause harm around the joint.
bones
Cartilage is the connective tissue between bones.
Tendons are connective tissue that connects bone and muscles.
Ligaments - The tissue that connects cartilage and bone
These chemicals can cause rheumatoid joint injury if the condition is not treated. The end result can be irreparable.
There are a myriad of theories on how the immune system can attack joints, which includes the possibility of an infection being the trigger. But none of these theories has been proven to be true.
Possible risk factors
There are many things that can increase your chances of developing rheumatoid arthritis, such as:
Genes. There are some indications that arthritis rheumatoid may run in families. However, since genes play a tiny part in the condition's development it is not a high likelihood of it being passed on to the next generation.
hormones. Rheumatoid arthritis is more common in women than men, which could be due to effects of the hormone estrogen, however, this connection hasn't been proven
Smoking cigarettes is a risk factor for rheumatoid artifiid. Some evidence supports this.