Causes of autoimmune diseases.

Scientists at the IfReC Center for Immunology at Osaka University in Japan have reported a new molecular mechanism that could explain some autoimmune diseases.
the immune system is essential to protect the body from infections and diseases, prolonged activeness can damage healthy tissue.
activated, specialized immune cells called regulatory T-cells are cut off by the immune system.
the development of Treg cells is considered key to fighting autoimmune diseases.
"the development of Treg cells in the thymus depends on the creation of super-enhancers," explains IfReC Shimon Sakaguchi.
the creation of this super-enhancer allows the expression of genes specific to the development of Treg cells.
"super enhancers seem to be a prerequisite for Treg cell development, so we seek to control the molecules of super enhancers," he added.
in the latest publication from the Sakaguchi laboratory, seen in the journal Nature Immunology, Sakaguchi and his team reported on the super-enhancers necessary for Satb1 to regulate the development of Treg cells.
to look at the pathways of Treg cell development, the scientists found that Satb1 levels were highest before Treg cells developed and decreased after Treg cell development.
further studies have shown that Satb1 binds to the super-enhancer responsible for Therg cell development, but, again, only the ancestral cells differentiate into Treg cells rather than Therg cells themselves.
, Satb1 can regulate the pre-Treg cell production of pre-esogen genetic changes.
"Satb1 seems necessary for the differentiation of Treg cells, but not for the maintenance of Treg cells," said Dr. Yohko Kitagawa, who first wrote the study.
, in mice lacking Satb1, the development of Treg cells was impaired and the mice showed symptoms of autoimmune disease.
, these mice had less activity with super-enhancers, which led to less expression of the genes necessary for the development of Treg cells.
these findings, Sakaguchi reasoned that defective Satb1-dependent super-enhancers may be the cause of autoimmune diseases and allergies.
" autoimmune disease is due to an over-active immune system, and one reason is that there are not enough Treg cells, and understanding the condition is an important step in the treatment of autoimmune diseases.
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