Food allergies, frequently manifesting in childhood, pose a significant threat, with potential for severe or fatal consequences. At National Jewish Health, researchers are actively pioneering a program aimed at preventing such allergies, having recently uncovered early indicators of this condition, marking a pivotal stride towards proactive intervention. ()
Researchers have identified biomarker for atopic dermatitis and food allergy – the abnormality is abnormal lipids, microbes and proteins.
During a recent study just published online in the March 2024 issue of the Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology, skin tape strips were collected from the forearms of newborns at the age of two months, an age before there are any signs of food allergies.
National Jewish Health researchers developed the skin tape sampling technique, which is noninvasive and gentle for these very young patients. The superficial proteins on the skin and the lipids bind to the tape, and then the tape is extracted to study the details of what is found on the skin. Children were clinically monitored until they reached two years of age to see if allergies would develop.
Innovative Skin Tape Methodology Unlocks Clues to Immune System Dysfunction
“We know that the immune system underneath the skin alters the skin barrier. With our painless skin tapes, we know if proteins sitting on the surface of the skin are abnormal,” said Evgeny Berdyshev, PhD, a researcher at National Jewish Health and first author of the study.
“Ultimately, we want to identify people at risk for food allergy and address skin barrier abnormalities early to prevent the development of these conditions,” said Donald Leung, MD, head of the Division of Pediatric Allergy & Immunology in the Department of Pediatrics at National Jewish Health, and senior author of the study.
“This is just the first step,” said Dr. Leung. “We are now testing newborn babies to determine whether we can prevent this abnormality. We put a lipid cream on the skin of the study participants, so it hopefully can penetrate the skin and infuse it with fatty acids. We are working to develop an anti-inflammatory cream as a result of this study.”
Reference:
- Skin biomarkers predict the development of food allergy in early life – (https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S009167492400229X)
Source-Eurekalert
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