For patients with celiac disease, treatment with a selective oral transglutaminase 2 inhibitor (ZED1227) attenuates gluten-induced duodenal mucosal damage, according to a study published in the July 1 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
The researchers found that at all three dose levels, ZED1227 treatment attenuated gluten-induced duodenal mucosal injury. From baseline to week six, the mean ratio of villus height to crypt depth estimated difference from placebo was 0.44, 0.49, and 0.48 in the 10-, 50-, and 100-mg groups, respectively. For the change in intraepithelial lymphocyte density, the estimated differences from placebo were −2.7, −4.2, and −9.6 cells per 100 epithelial cells, respectively, for 10-, 50-, and 100-mg ZED1227. Symptom and quality-of-life scores may have been improved with use of the 100-mg dose.
"Although this trial is very encouraging, whether treatment with ZED1227, and more generally transglutaminase 2 inhibition, in patients with celiac disease will be efficient in real life and during long-term gluten exposure remains to be determined," writes the author of an accompanying editorial.
