Unveiling the Sweet Secret: How Sugars Guide Immune Cells in Psoriasis
A groundbreaking discovery has shed light on the crucial role of sugars in the battle against psoriasis, an inflammatory skin condition.
The recent study, published in Science Signaling, challenges our understanding of immune cell movement during psoriasis. Led by Dr. Amy Saunders from Lancaster University and Dr. Douglas Dyer from the University of Manchester, along with their PhD student Dr. Megan Priestley, now at MIT, the research team has uncovered a fascinating mechanism.
Our bodies are coated with a protective layer called the glycocalyx, a gel-like shield of complex sugar molecules. This layer, found on the outer surface of cell membranes, especially those lining blood vessels, offers protection against mechanical and chemical damage. However, the glycocalyx also plays a vital role in immune cell navigation.
Researchers made a remarkable finding: immune cells, equipped with their own glycocalyx, shed this layer to facilitate their journey from the bloodstream into tissues during inflammatory skin diseases. This challenges the previous belief that only the blood vessel walls altered their glycocalyx to aid this process.
But here's where it gets controversial: the shedding of the glycocalyx is a double-edged sword. While it promotes immune cell movement to fight infections, it can also drive inflammatory diseases like psoriasis.
Dr. Saunders expressed excitement about the findings, hoping they will pave the way for advancements in inflammatory disease treatment. Dr. Dyer echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the collaborative effort to redefine our understanding of immune cell recruitment.
Dr. Priestley, who worked on this project during her PhD, highlighted the fun and importance of the research, bringing attention to the role of sugars in the immune system.
The study's implications are far-reaching. Designing drugs to control immune cell movement between the blood and tissues could be a game-changer in treating both infections and inflammatory diseases. This research may lead to a paradigm shift in drug development targeting immune cell migration.
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