title: Environmental factors in autoimmune diseases and their role in multiple sclerosis.
abstract: An increase in autoimmune diseases poses a socioeconomic challenge worldwide. Predisposing genetic risk has been identified, yet environmental factors make up a significant part of the risk in disease initiation and propagation. Next to improved hygiene and a gross reduction of infections, changes in dietary habits are one of the most evident Western lifestyle factors potentially associated with the increase in autoimmune diseases. Growing evidence suggests that particularly a typical 'Western diet', rich in saturated fat and salt and related pathologies can have a profound impact on local and systemic immune responses under physiologic and autoimmune conditions such as in multiple sclerosis (MS). In this review, we discuss recent findings on environmental factors influencing autoimmunity with an emphasis on the impact of 'Western diet' on immune homeostasis and gut microbiota in MS.
authors.affiliation: University Hospital Erlangen at the Friedrich-Alexander-University (FAU) Erlangen-Nuremberg, Erlangen, Germany.
authors.forename: Stefanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jörg
authors.affiliation: Translational Immunology, Department of Clinical Pathobiochemistry, Medical Faculty Carl Gustav Carus, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Diana A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Grohme
authors.affiliation: Translational Immunology, Department of Clinical Pathobiochemistry, Medical Faculty Carl Gustav Carus, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Erzler
authors.affiliation: VIB Laboratory of Translational Immunomodulation & Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
authors.forename: Marilene
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Binsfeld
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
authors.forename: Aiden
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Haghikia
authors.affiliation: Experimental and Clinical Research Center, An Institutional Cooperation Between the Charité Medical Faculty and the Max-Delbruck Center for Molecular Medicine, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Dominik N
authors.initials: DN
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.affiliation: University Hospital Erlangen at the Friedrich-Alexander-University (FAU) Erlangen-Nuremberg, Erlangen, Germany.
authors.forename: Ralf A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Linker
authors.affiliation: Translational Immunology, Department of Clinical Pathobiochemistry, Medical Faculty Carl Gustav Carus, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany. markus.kleinewietfeld@vib-uhasselt.be.|Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden (CRTD), Dresden, Germany. markus.kleinewietfeld@vib-uhasselt.be.|VIB Laboratory of Translational Immunomodulation & Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium. markus.kleinewietfeld@vib-uhasselt.be.
authors.forename: Markus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kleinewietfeld
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004777:Environment; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000009:adverse effects; D006801:Humans; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000276:immunology; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D005227:Fatty Acids
keywords: Autoimmunity; CD4+ T cells; Environmental risk factors; Foxp3+ Tregs; MS; Microbiota; Th17 cells