AS the world observes Allergy Week, from 22 to 28 April, scientists have discovered a method which can reduce sensitivity to allergies. The method which can switch on or turn off people’s reaction to allergies was contrived by scientists from the University of Queensland (Australia).
An allergic response is typically caused by immune cells, commonly referred to as T-cells, reacting to a protein in an allergen. The challenge lies in the fact that T-cells can become resistant to treatments over time. The scientists were able to manipulate the immune response which triggers allergy symptoms in mice.
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Head of the Division of Allergy and Clinical Immunology at UCT, Professor Jonny Peter, said even though the experiment was done on mice, it gives a glimpse of what may be possible in the human immune system.
“The ability to re-programme the immune system of allergy sufferers to be tolerant is the holy grail. Currently, available immune therapies take at least three years of daily treatment and may not provide lifelong benefits. These therapies are currently only available for inhaled allergens like house dust mite and not for life-threatening food allergies. If translated to humans, this research would be a game-changer. However, mice are not human, and translation has a long way to go. Furthermore, this worked focused on allergic airway inflammation, while food allergy mechanisms may be different. Human trials are expected to start in about five to six years, and only time will tell whether it is a viable option,” he said.
Prof Peter added that up to now progress on this front has been slow and expensive, due to the lack of high throughput technologies to investigate genetic variation in a large enough sample of patients.
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In South Africa alone, an estimated 30 per cent of the population suffer from allergic rhinitis (inflammation in the nose, which occurs when the immune system overreacts to allergens in the air), while 40 per cent suffers from asthma.
The World Allergy Organisation (WAO) reports that worldwide sensitisation to allergies in the environment is present in up to 40 per cent of the population. These disorders significantly impair a patient’s quality of life.
World Allergy Week observed from 22 to 28 April not only raises awareness about allergies but teach the public more about such disorders.
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