[Future therapeutics in celiac disease]

Celiac disease is a common autoimmune disease affecting 1% of the Western populations. It is an inappropriate immune response, in genetically susceptible patients to dietary wheat, rye, barley and oats. Treatment involves a Lifelong gluten-free diet that predisposes to low compliance due to limited variety, high cost and low palatability, imposing social pressure and affecting quality of life. The result is an urgent need for alternative therapeutic strategies. Based on the growing actual knowledge on the intestinal inflammatory cascade, mucosal immunology and genetics of celiac disease, new attractive potential therapies are emerging. Possibilities include: searching for low immunogenic wheat variants or strains pretreated with enzymes or binders for lower toxicity. Other strategies involve decreasing transepithelial uptake or dampening of the adaptive immune response by transglutaminase inhibitors or blockage of the HLA groove and immune modulation to shift the TH1 to TH2 profile. Developing biological therapy aims to decrease intestinal homing, adhesion and activity of inflammatory cells, counteract the pro-inflammatory cytokines, clonal intestinal T cells or mesenchymal stem cell replacement or mitogenic intestinal repair safety, cost, affordability and clinical effectiveness are of prime concern. Most of the above strategies showed promising results ex-vivo. The future will highlight the in-vivo winner.