Clinical Significance of Excess Lactose in the Diet (part 1)

Abstract

In the article on the basis of the literature there has been considered the statistics of average consumption of lactose in the countries of the world community, reviewed the clinical significance of the excess lactose in the diet depending on the polymorphism of the lactase gene. Lactose is the main source of energy for the children of the first months of life, which provides about 40–45 % of the daily energy needs of a body of a child. Lactose malabsorption, deficiency of the enzyme lactase is accompanied by symptoms of lactose intolerance. Interest in the study of the influence of an immunomodulatory β-galactoside lactose was caused by the suppression of its galectin 9 ­(Gal-9), the regulatory T-cell immune response involving T-helper cells 1 and 17 (Th1, Th17) and regulatory T-lymphocytes (Treg), which are involved in many immune-mediated human disea­ses. Galectin 9 is the representative of the class of galectins such as «tandem repeat». The highest level of LGALS9 expression is observed in the tissues of colon, lung, bone marrow, lymph nodes, thymus, liver, kidney, endocrine glands, placenta, skin, smooth muscle, adipose tissue.

Keywords

• lactose
• LCT polymorphisms
• galectin 9
• inflammation
• exogenous lactase