13 June 2025

Currently the only way to be diagnosed with coeliac disease is to continue to eat the very thing that could be making you ill, gluten. This puts many people off getting a medical diagnosis for coeliac disease, causing them to miss out on vital support to manage the condition and any complications. Finding a less invasive diagnostic test for coeliac disease is one of our top ten research priorities and there is also an unmet need for a diagnostic test for those who have already removed gluten from their diet. A recent breakthrough is now bringing us a step closer.

A team of researchers in Australia have developed a blood test that can spot coeliac disease without gluten having to be in the diet. The research, published this week in Gastroenterology shows that immune cells from people with coeliac disease react to gluten in a controlled laboratory setting. This means it can identify people with coeliac disease, even those on a gluten free diet. The study investigated if immune cells (called T cells) that are present in blood samples, responded to gluten that was applied directly to a blood sample.  

Interleukin 2 (IL-2) is an immune marker that previous research has shown rises in patients with coeliac disease when T cells are exposed to gluten. High levels of IL-2 were seen when gluten was added to blood samples taken from people with coeliac disease. This was regardless of whether they were currently eating a gluten containing diet or not, raising the possibility of IL2 as a marker for a diagnostic test.    

Coeliac UK funded research that identified fragments in gluten that are toxic to people with coeliac disease. This along with further research by others led to a study where they learned that IL2 peaked when people with coeliac disease ate gluten and IL2 was associated with symptoms such as nausea and vomiting. The research, over many years, along with this latest research supported with funding from Coeliac Australia, is an excellent example of how research evolves and continues to improve our understanding.   

Around 64% of people with coeliac disease in the UK don’t have a medical diagnosis representing an estimated half a million people undiagnosed in the UK alone. Currently, diagnosis is made based on antibody blood tests and in some cases taking a sample of the gut to look for the characteristic changes and damage associated with coeliac disease. For these tests to be accurate and to prevent false negative results, foods containing gluten need to be consumed for at least six weeks before testing and throughout the testing period. This is hugely challenging for someone experiencing debilitating symptoms. Removing the need to continually eat gluten could help to improve people’s pathway to getting a diagnosis and increase rates of diagnosis of coeliac disease. 

Further studies are needed before this new test can be used in healthcare settings, but these initial results are promising, and Coeliac UK remain committed to following and reporting on new evidence as it emerges. 

Dr Bob Anderson, Co-founder of Novoviah Pharmaceuticals, and who has been on this research journey, explains how the new test could also be helpful to those who have already adopted a gluten free diet without first being tested for coeliac disease: 

“Individuals (without a diagnosis of coeliac disease) might question whether they have coeliac disease but there has been no convenient medical test for those already on a gluten free diet. The Novoleukin-C test system has the potential to identify those who should remain on a gluten free diet and those who could potentially reintroduce gluten without negative health effect. The Novoleukin-C test system has already been incorporated in many clinical trials of experimental therapies for coeliac disease. I am delighted that many years of immunology research in coeliac disease has delivered a testing system that could speed up diagnosis”