UB and CSIC develop a protein that degrades gluten and opens new avenues for treating celiac disease
Celiac disease is a chronic autoimmune disorder that affects more than 1% of the population in Europe and Spain. It has no cure, and many celiac patients continue to suffer intestinal symptoms even when strictly following a gluten-free diet. Now, a joint team from the University of Barcelona (UB) and the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) has developed a protein capable of degrading gluten, called Celiacase, with potential implications for the treatment of this disease and also for the production of gluten-free products.
The team has been jointly led by Professor Francisco J. Pérez Cano, from the Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Sciences at UB and director of the Institute of Nutrition and Food Safety Research (INSA-UB), together with Dr. Xavier Gomis, from the Institute of Molecular Biology of Barcelona at CSIC.
Celiac disease originates when the immune system of certain genetically predisposed individuals recognizes components of gluten as foreign substances, triggering an autoimmune reaction that causes inflammation and damage to the small intestine.
The innovative protein developed by this team, designed using genetic engineering techniques based on a protein found in a carnivorous plant, is an enzyme that degrades these toxic gluten fragments, thereby reducing their harmful effects.
Preclinical experiments and tests in a dynamic gastrointestinal simulator, which reproduces the human digestive tract, have shown that the new protein can drastically reduce the number of toxic fragments, even when very small amounts are used. Moreover, it performed much more effectively than the existing alternative available on the market with similar characteristics.
Among the advantages of the protein developed by the UB/CSIC consortium are its stability, resistance to digestive enzymes, and its ability to act in the acidic environment of the stomach, that is, before the harmful gluten fragments can reach the intestine. The team has also established a highly efficient recombinant production system, allowing for high yields of pure protein.
Celiacase has demonstrated its usefulness in vivo in a mouse model of celiac disease, preventing the onset of intestinal damage, autoimmune response, and dysbiosis —the imbalance of intestinal microbiota associated with the disease process.
Having successfully completed the in vivo proof-of-concept stage represents a major step forward towards the development of a complementary therapy to the gluten-free diet, which in many cases is not sufficient to control intestinal manifestations. This discovery opens new perspectives in the fight against celiac disease, offering hope to thousands of patients who need safe and effective alternatives to improve their quality of life.