Remy
Administrator
Seems like this new therapy would have implication for MCAS as well as other autoimmune diseases, asthma and food allergies.
I hope the human trials go well!
I hope the human trials go well!
"This discovery portends a major breakthrough towards a therapeutic reversal of food allergen sensitivity," said Dr. Judah Denburg, scientific director and CEO of AllerGen. "The treatment prevents anaphylactic responses in what were previously fully sensitive mice, opening the door for translating this therapy into the clinic."
There is compelling evidence this technique could be effective in humans. In 2010, Gordon's team demonstrated they could reverse an asthmatic response in human cells in a test tube. Using three applications of a similar therapy in a 2012 study, the researchers effectively eliminated asthma in afflicted mice, within only eight weeks.
Here's how the technique works:
•The key component of this research is dendritic cells, which serve as the gate-keepers of the immune system and are present in tissues in contact with the external environment, such as the skin and the inner lining of the nose, lungs, stomach and intestines.
•Gordon's pioneering treatment involves producing dendritic cells in a test tube and then exposing them to a unique mix of proteins, a vitamin A-related acid naturally occurring in the human gut, and to the allergen, in this case, peanut or ovalbumin (egg white protein). The modified dendritic cells are then reintroduced into the mouse.
•Using this technique, the researchers were able to nearly eliminate the allergic reaction by converting allergen-sensitive immune cells into cells that mimic the response seen in healthy, non-allergic individuals.
The treatment reduced the observed symptoms of anaphylaxis, and lowered other key protein markers in the allergic response by up to 90 per cent.
Food allergy is a growing public health issue in Canada. Currently, there is no known cure. According to the Canadian Institute for Health Information, an estimated 171,000 Canadians visited emergency rooms for allergic reactions from 2013 to 2014, the rate of anaphylaxis visits increased by 95 per cent from 2006 to 2014, and the severity of reactions is increasing.
Gordon said the new technique also shows promise for treating autoimmune disorders such as multiple sclerosis. "It would take very little to adapt the therapy for autoimmune diseases," he said.
Story Source:
Materials provided by University of Saskatchewan. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
- Wojciech Dawicki, Chunyan Li, Jennifer Town, Xiaobei Zhang, John R. Gordon. Therapeutic reversal of food allergen sensitivity by mature retinoic acid–differentiated dendritic cell induction of LAG3 CD49b−Foxp3− regulatory T cells. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 2016; DOI: 10.1016/j.jaci.2016.07.042