Oral tolerance

Oral administration of antigen results in immune tolerance which is mediated by anergy, deletion or the generation of regulatory cells, depending on the dose of antigen administered. Regulatory cells which secrete anti-inflammatory cytokines such as TGF-beta lead to bystander suppression at the target organ of the antigen fed. Oral administration of autoantigens has been shown to suppress autoimmune diseases in several animal models and is being tested as a potential therapy in human autoimmune and other inflammatory diseases.