Ketone bodies, which are actively released during fasting, nourish immune cells, according to a study conducted by scientists and staff of the Van Andel Institute (USA).
This study helps us better understand how nutrition affects the immune system. The results, published in the journal Immunity, could pave the way for future personalized nutritional advice to improve the treatment of infections, cancer and other diseases.
The findings focus on ketone bodies, which are produced regularly by the liver, but become more abundant when the body lacks glucose, which acts as the primary source of energy for cells. This can happen during exercise, such as during exercise, when cells burn fuel quickly, or during fasting, when there is not enough food to break down into glucose.
In compensation, the liver increases the production of ketone bodies to fuel the brain and other organs. Research shows that ketone bodies also nourish immune cells. And this unexpected discovery sheds light on new connections between nutrition and immunity.
Like other cells in the body, T cells, soldiers of the immune system, absorb nutrients (such as glucose) from our diet in order to generate energy needed for their life and work. Scientists have shown that T cells prefer ketone bodies to glucose as a fuel source. They also found that ketone bodies improve T-cell function by reprogramming them to better deal with threats. Conversely, loss of the ability to process ketone bodies causes defects in T-cell function and reduces their ability to fight infection.
The authors suggest that ketone bodies may be an evolutionary fail-safe that boosts the immune system when nutrient resources substances are limited, for example, when appetite is suppressed during illness.