For roughly one in every hundred people, even tiny amounts of gluten can trigger severe symptoms and pose serious health risks.

While a domino effect of immunological reactions can be traced back to their genetic roots, multiple contributing factors make it hard to map the precise chain of events that causes celiac disease.

Using transgenic mice, an international team led by scientists from McMaster University in Canada has pinpointed a crucial role played by the gut's lining cells, a major stepping stone that could lead to new therapies.