Celiac disease serology and gut microbiome following proton pump inhibitor treatment

Celiac disease is an autoimmune enteropathy characterized by an aberrant immune response to ingested gluten in genetically predisposed individuals. Studies have pointed to a rising prevalence of celiac disease in recent decades. Changes in diet and use of medication that may impact the gut microbiome have been suggested as potential contributors. Exposure to proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) was recently found to be associated with an increased risk for subsequent diagnosis of celiac disease. We aimed to investigate potential mechanisms for this link by examining the relationship between PPI use and gluten-related immune responses in the context of changes in gut microbiome.

We performed a post hoc analysis of blood and fecal samples from a recent randomized trial in order to assess the potential association between PPI use and development of celiac disease serology in conjunction with alterations in gastrointestinal microbial composition. The study included 12 healthy participants who were administered a PPI (Omeprazole; 40 mg twice daily) for 4 or 8 weeks.

The analysis did not reveal an overall significant change in levels of serologic markers of celiac disease for the study cohort in response to PPI treatment. However, one individual developed a marked increase in the celiac disease-specific autoantibody response to transglutaminase 2 in conjunction with enhanced immune reactivity to gluten during the trial. Genotyping revealed positivity for the celiac disease-associated HLA-DQ2 and -DQ8 alleles. Furthermore, the observed elevation in antibody responses was closely associated with a sharp increase in fecal abundance of bacteria of the order Actinomycetales.

The results of this exploratory analysis support further investigation of molecular mechanisms involved in the contribution of PPIs to celiac disease risk through the potential enhancement of gluten immunopathology and changes in gut microbial population.