IL-17 is a protein secreted by the immune system that plays a role in multiple inflammatory and autoimmune conditions including psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, hidradenitis suppurativa, systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and multiple sclerosis. These conditions are important to study because they are common and confer a large burden on the patients affected by them. Although new treatments targeting IL-17 show great promise, the response to them varies for reasons not fully understood. Studies have shown that sodium plays a significant role in IL-17 activation, therefore, the primary goal of our research is to determine whether dietary sodium (salt) intake is associated with IL-17-mediated conditions. There is evidence to suggest that a history of common infections could influence the role of sodium, therefore we will evaluate whether two common pathogens, Candida albicans and Staphylococcus aureus, impact rates of sodium-mediated IL-17 disease. Finally, because IL-17 mediated diseases are often more common among populations with lower socioeconomic status, we will also assess whether sodium intake and diet quality contribute to this finding. Our results could inform limited dietary guidelines for patients with IL-17-mediated conditions and potentially identify dietary sodium reduction as a low-cost, non-invasive form of disease management.
