Intestinal permeability

Intestinal permeability is a term describing the control of material passing from inside the gastrointestinal tract through the cells lining the gut wall, into the rest of the body.

[6][9] Second, it acts as a selective filter which facilitates the uptake of dietary nutrients, electrolytes, water and various other beneficial substances from the intestinal lumen.

[4] Gliadin (a glycoprotein present in wheat) activates zonulin signaling in all people who eat gluten, irrespective of the genetic expression of autoimmunity.

[14] Most people do not experience adverse symptoms, but the opening of intercellular tight junctions (increased intestinal permeability) can act as a trigger for diseases that can affect any organ or tissue depending on genetic predisposition.

[26][27] Other environmental triggers may contribute to alter permeability in celiac disease, including intestinal infections and iron deficiency.

It seems to be a drug candidate for use in conjunction with a gluten-free diet in people with celiac disease, with the aim to reduce the intestinal permeability caused by gluten and its passage through the epithelium, and therefore mitigating the resulting cascade of immune reactions.

[20] It has been popularized by some nutritionists and practitioners of alternative medicine who claim that restoring normal functioning of the gut wall can cure many systemic health conditions.

Scheme of selective permeability routes of epithelial cells (red arrows). The transcellular (through the cells) and paracellular (between the cells) routes control the passage of substances between the intestinal lumen and blood.