Nutritional factors govern gut homeostasis via oral tolerance

Gut commensal flora: tolerance and homeostasis

Commensal microorganisms are not ignored by the intestinal immune system. Recent evidence shows that commensals actively participate in maintaining intestinal immune homeostasis by interacting with intestinal epithelial cells and delivering tolerogenic signals that are transmitted to the underlying cells of the immune system.

Immunology of the gut and oral tolerance

The gastrointestinal tract has developed a unique immunological system because of its close proximity to the intestinal contents. The system has evolved in such a way that it does not respond to the presence of beneficial microbes, but retains the ability to react quickly to the presence of harmful organisms. The challenge faced by the mucosal immune system is to generate an immune response of ...

The gut and oral glucose tolerance.

Gut immune system and oral tolerance.

Gut mucosal surfaces separate the external environment from the internal sterile environment and so represent a first line of defence system. This barrier faces environments rich in pathogens that have developed effective mechanisms for colonisation of epithelial surfaces and invasion of mucosal tissues, but also harmless antigens such as food, airborne antigens or commensal bacterial flora. Th...

Nutrient control of energy homeostasis via gut-brain neural circuits.

Intestinal gluconeogenesis is a recently described function in intestinal glucose metabolism. In particular, the intestine contributes around 20-25% of total endogenous glucose production during fasting. Intestinal gluconeogenesis appears to regulate energy homeostasis via a neurally mediated mechanism linking the enterohepatic portal system with the brain. The periportal neural system is able ...