Immune system modulation via oral tolerance

Oral tolerance refers to the active immunological process in which oral exposure to an antigen—usually dietary proteins or administered therapeutic antigens—induces local and systemic hyporesponsiveness, primarily via expansion of regulatory T cells and other immune modulatory mechanisms[1][2][3][4]. This process is mediated by gut-associated lymphoid tissue, with key roles for dendritic cells, Tregs (Foxp3+ and Foxp3–), cytokines (e.g., IL-10, TGF-β), and the gut microbiota, allowing discrimination between harmful and harmless antigens encountered in the gastrointestinal tract. Oral tolerance underpins multiple immunotherapeutic strategies (such as antigen-specific oral immunotherapy for food allergies and autoimmune diseases) but is not itself a molecular target or receptor[1][2][4][6].

Other names

Oral toleranceInduction of immune tolerance via oral deliveryAntigen-specific oral immunotherapy

Induction of regulatory T cells (Tregs); Clonal deletion or anergy of effector T cells; Generation of antigen-specific immune hyporesponsiveness through repeated oral antigen exposure; Modulation of dendritic cell function, especially CD103+ DCs, in gut mucosa.