Research Shows Leafy Greens Boost Intestinal Immunity via Gene
The research comes from the University of Melbourne and Melbourne’s Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research. The researchers studied the ingestion of leafy and cruciferous vegetables along with other foods. They measured and analyzed intestinal levels of interleukin 22 – a critical element that regulates intestinal immunity through an immune cell called NKp46+. This is also called an innate lymphoid cell – or ILC.
IL-22 and the innate lymphoid cells play a critical part of the intestine’s control of inflammatory conditions and food allergies. Low levels have been seen amongst various inflammatory diseases.
The genetic factor which stimulates these innate lymphoid cells from greens is called T-bet. T-bet is a genetic transcription factor that stimulates the a type of signalling gene called a Notch gene. These Notch genes stimulate the conversion of from lymphoid tissue-inducers to innate lymphoid cells, according to the research.
The research was led by Dr. Gabrielle Belz from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute. Dr. Belz commented on the research:
“In this study, we discovered that T-bet is the key gene that instructs precursor cells to develop into ILCs (innate lymphoid cells), which it does in response to signals in the food we eat and to bacteria in the gut. ILCs are essential for immune surveillance of the digestive system and this is the first time that we have identified a gene responsible for the production of ILCs.”
The research illustrated that leafy and cruciferous greens apparently donate key proteins. “Proteins in these leafy greens could be part of the same signalling pathway that is used by T-bet to produce ILCs,” added Dr. Belz.
The green vegetables apparently interact with cell surface receptors, which switch on the T-bet gene.
Besides this factor, leafy and cruciferous greens also supply a wide breadth of nutrients, including folate, iron, potassium, calcium, vitamin K, beta-carotene, lutein, zeaxanthin and others. The need for vitamin K is critical to immunity, as it helps regulate inflammation, healing and blood clotting.
Written by Case Adams, Naturopath
Rankin LC, Groom JR, Chopin M, Herold MJ, Walker JA, Mielke LA, McKenzie AN, Carotta S, Nutt SL, Belz GT. The transcription factor T-bet is essential for the development of NKp46(+) innate lymphocytes via the Notch pathway. Nat Immunol. 2013 Mar 3. doi: 10.1038/ni.2545.