AUTO-IMMUNE DISEASE
AUTO-IMMUNE MECHANISM
There are many horrible diseases in life. Cancer in its malignant form, is probably the worst. Although a small percentage of cancer victims are cured, the majority die, and in a painful way.
Yet, another group of diseases, are, perhaps, more disagreeable. The autoimmune diseases, in general, are not as deadly as the cancers; yet, patients suffering from these diseases may live with such mental and physical discomfort that they may wish they were dead.
There are over 86 different autoimmune diseases. We have all heard of the famous ones, such as Multiple Sclerosis, Lupus, Psoriasis, Crohns Disease and Rheumatoid Arthritis.
The other 82 forms are just as disagreeable to the victims they affect as the famous ones noted above, even though their names may be totally unintelligible to the average person.
CAUSES OF DISEASE
Survival is the primordial force on this planet. Every living being is designed by nature to do anything necessary to survive. Since, without survival there can be no procreation and without procreation there cannot be, and there would not be, life on this planet.
If we understand this over-riding fact, that every living creature is constructed to survive under all circumstances, then we can understand why there is disease and why the body combats it.
DISEASE
Disease is the manifestation of confronting living forces. This confrontation may occur within the same body by the behavior of the same individual.
Normally, a disease ensues when living beings from without the body attack the body. We have invented different terms for these events using the term “infection” when the attackers are micro-organisms or the term “trauma” when the attacking force is non-living, for example, a vehicle striking the body, or, a term that involves time, such as, “chronic” when there is repetitive micro-trauma, as in “arthritis.”
Self destructive diseases, for example, “Alcoholism” or “Obesity” involving conflicting behavior by the same person, have their set of unique terms.
Diseases such as cancer and the auto-immune diseases appear, at first glance, to have only one participant the patient. But on examination we see many cancers as a result of self-destructive behavior, for example smoking, exposure to radiation, or as a result of an unknown force.
The unknown force may be external to the body, or internal. When it is internal, it is a manifestation of a gene that produces a molecule or a cell that is antagonistic to the remainder of the body.
GENES AND AUTOIMMUNITY
It has been very clearly established by health care scientists that genes and auto- immunity have a confrontational relationship. In order to understand this confrontation we need to have a basic idea of what is involved in an autoimmune disease.
In 1859, Charles Darwin presented his Theory that living beings, over a period of millions of years, were in a constant battle for survival, and that those individuals that survived in this constant warfare, would genetically give their characteristics onto their heirs.
Subsequently, other writers would describe Darwin’s Thesis as “Survival of the Fittest.” Scientists have established, without any reasonable doubt, that living beings are in constant battle with their environment, and that those species which have survived over time, had developed unique systems, of anatomy or behavior, to overcome the forces that attacked them.
THE IMMUNE SYSTEM
One unique system is termed: The Immune System.
Since our body is swimming in a sea of atoms, molecules, micro-organisms and potentially lethal animals or physical forces, our bodies have developed a complex system of defense which can sustain life under most conditions of attack from external or internal forces.
This system of defense has two major armies: The Clotting Army and the Immune System or Attacking Army.
The Clotting Army is used for trauma. The soldiers of the clotting army are specialized molecules which join together when blood vessels are ruptured. Bleeding occurs frequently when one animal attacks another and the need to stop bleeding is essential to survival.
When bleeding starts, platelets rush to the area of the broken vessel or vessels, and a “cascade” of proteins fall into place with the ultimate formation of a clot. In general, this clotting mechanism is sufficient to stop the blood loss. If not, the individual dies.
The evolution of the Clotting Army is an excellent example of Natures design to insure survival.
When atoms, molecules of micro-organisms attack, however, the Attacking Army is called into action. The Attacking Army is called by medical scientists, the Immune System.
The term “Attacking Army” may give the reader a more incisive understanding of the behavior of the cells in his body, than the term “Immune System” which has no descriptive value for the cells and molecules involved in defending the body.
COMPONENTS OF AN ARMY
For people who have never been in the military, the structure of an army may be unknown. It is almost ironic that the army that humans form when they fight each other is almost identical to the army that exists in every living being, from elephants to insects, for protection against invasion by micro-organisms or even external molecules.
The medical study of this army is called “Immunology” and it includes a small section called: “Allergy” which studies the effect of invading atoms and molecules.
Fighting an invading army is no different at the level of human beings than it is at the level of micro-organisms.
SCOUTS
When an army invades, the defense must become aware of the invasion, before a defense can be established. This defense will be an attack, not a retreat, because in life, retreat means death.
In an army scouts are soldiers who can recognize the enemy’s presence and tell the the killers to attack the enemy and destroy them. These scouts in the immune system are called T Cells.
During growth and development of the individual the immature T Cells are “trained” by the cells of the Thymus, a gland at the base of the neck.
In the Thymus the immature cells are exposed to all the cells of the body, and with this imprint in their cytoplasm, they can tell Self from Non-self. This almost miraculous passage of detailed information and its retention by single cells is the key to the immune system.
When a new cell enters the body, T Cells examine it and, the cell is foreign, they activate other cells that produce antibodies which attach themselves to the foreign cell and Killer cells engulf the foreign cell thereby killing it.
The recognition of foreign elements is not restricted to cells. It also takes place with proteins and other molecules, giving rise to the symptoms of Allergies.
It can easily be understood, that if the T Cells do not function with complete exactitude, they can easily lead to destruction of the body’s own tissues.
It is this faulty recognition that is believed to be the basis of the auto-immune process. Frequently, the faulty recognition occurs because a micro-organism such as a virus or bacteria enters the body and binds with tissue cells.
The cells of the immune system recognize the micro-organism as non-self and attack it. Since the micro-organism is attached to body tissue, this tissue is destroyed as well. The is the cause of Rheumatic Fever, a dangerous disease which follows a Strep infection and which results in destruction of the kidneys.
GENETIC DIFFERENCES
Researchers have known for almost a century that auto-immune disease follows a geographic pattern.
Auto-immune disease is most prevalent inthe high latitudes, close to the North Pole. At the high latitudes we have genetically unique populations, the Scandinavians. As we travel south to the equator, we have less and less cases of auto-immune disease.
Africa has the world’s lowest incidence of Auto-immunity.
We also know, from tissue studies, that people in the high latitudes differ in terms of the genetic formation of their tissue. We have discovered that certain auto-immune diseases almost require a specific type of tissue for the activation of the disease.
HOW DO GENES PRODUCE AUTO-IMMUNITY?
We remember that the auto-immune process involves a “lack of memory” on the part of the T Cells. It is theorized that if the cells contain different genetic patterns, it is more probable that an error will be made. This is logical in terms of statistics. A cell is a group of molecules arranged in a specific pattern. It can fit with other molecules with a degree of accuracy if the other molecules are a match to its molecules. It is like a jig saw puzzle. If the pieces fit exactly, the correct picture will emerge. If they do not fit exactly, a distorted picture will emerge.
MORE FEMALES
Another interesting fact is that more women develop autoimmune disease than men. This difference can exceed a ratio of two to one, depending on the disease.
Here again, we see genes in play. Women have two X Genes whereas men have an X and Y Gene, which implies that men have more different tissue types. The two X genes will reinforce the tissues that they control, making the appearance of the disease more probable.
CURES
There are no cures for auto-immune diseases. There are many ways to control these diseases, primarily by depressing the immune system so that it does not attack the tissue of the patient, but this leaves the patient open to infection and also, at an increased risk for cancer.
The genetic predisposition for these diseases raises the question of whether they existed when people or animals had less foreign genes in their population. On the other hand, one has to question whether inbreeding contributes to auto-immunity since inbreeding does contribute to the emergence of a host of genetic syndromes.
Recently, the medical community has achieved some success in the treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis through the use of Monoclonal Antibodies which destroy some of the molecules that destroy the tissue involved.
The future of the Auto-immune diseases still remains shrouded in mystery. Like cancer, the cure is a long way off.
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