Bacteria linked to autoimmune disease

FARMINGTON, Conn., Nov. 25 (UPI) -- Factors from common human bacteria may trigger autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, U.S. researchers said.

Researchers at the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington said their animal study found a unique type of lipid known as phosphorylated dihydroceramides produced by some bacteria -- in this case by human bacteria commonly found in the mouth called porphyromas gingivali.

Study leaders Robert Clark and Frank Nichols suggest these lipids produced by several bacteria commonly found in the gastrointestional tract may act as "tipping" factors -- playing a previously unrecognized role in initiating or exacerbating human autoimmune diseases.

"While it is clear that the immune system in most individuals has the potential to attack self-tissues, the 'tipping' factors that initiate and propagate autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis in only a subset of individuals remain unknown," the study authors said in a statement. The researchers said their results represent the first description that phosphorylated dihydroceramides derived from common human bacteria are capable of enhancing autoimmune disease.

The findings are published in the American Journal of Pathology.