Allergies News and Research

Latest Allergies News and Research

Epigenetic changes due to methylation play a key role in altering genes in RA

It's not just our DNA that makes us susceptible to disease and influences its impact and outcome. Scientists are beginning to realize more and more that important changes in genes that are unrelated to changes in the DNA sequence itself - a field of study known as epigenetics - are equally influential.

4 Jul 2012

Hay fever symptom severity plateau identified

Study findings suggest that individuals sensitized to Poaceae, a family of land grasses, experience increasing severity in hay fever symptoms in line with daily levels, up to a saturation point.

2 Jul 2012

Study illuminates key step in the journey of inflammation-producing immune cells

Like detectives seeking footprints and other clues on a television "whodunit," science can also benefit from analyzing the tracks of important players in the body's molecular landscape. Klaus Ley, M.D., a scientist at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology, has done just that and illuminated a key step in the journey of inflammation-producing immune cells.

2 Jul 2012

Smokers with COPD may find relief with cystic fibrosis drug

A drug developed to treat certain strains of cystic fibrosis may be useful in the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, one of the most common lung diseases, which is seen frequently in smokers and has no cure. The findings were published online Friday, June 29, 2012 in the online journal PLoS ONE by researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

30 Jun 2012

Eight-year trends in pediatric drug use examined

A review of US outpatient pediatric drug use over the past 8 years shows a decrease in systemic antibiotic, allergy, pain, and depression prescriptions, and an increase in asthma, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and contraceptive prescriptions.

29 Jun 2012

Link between phthalates and early eczema uncovered

Research published in Environmental Health Perspectives suggests that prenatal exposure to butylbenzyl phthalate, a common component of vinyl flooring, may increase a child’s risk for developing early eczema.

29 Jun 2012

TB research finds body’s own response helps TB bacteria survive

Inhibiting a key immune response in mice during initial multi-drug treatment for tuberculosis could — paradoxically — shorten treatment time for the highly contagious lung infection according to new research from Johns Hopkins Children’s Center and the Center for TB Research. Shorter duration of drug therapy is key, researchers say, to increase treatment compliance for the growing global health threat posed by the disease.

28 Jun 2012

Data from Infinity’s IPI-145 pre-clinical study on inflammatory diseases

Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today reported preclinical data for IPI-145, the company's oral inhibitor of phosphoinositide-3-kinase (PI3K)-delta and PI3K-gamma. The data demonstrate potent PI3K-delta and -gamma inhibition in biochemical, cellular and whole blood assays and activity in multiple preclinical models of inflammatory disease, including rheumatoid arthritis and asthma.

28 Jun 2012

MAARA invests £340,000 into vital asthma and allergy research

A charity operating Britain's longest-running pollen database is investing over £340,000 into vital asthma and allergy research at the University of Leicester.

27 Jun 2012

Broken heart syndrome may protect the heart from adrenaline overload

A condition that temporarily causes heart failure in people who experience severe stress might actually protect the heart from very high levels of adrenaline, according to a new study published in the journal Circulation. The research provides the first physiological explanation for Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, also called "broken heart syndrome" because it affects people who suffer severe emotional stress after bereavement, and suggests guidance for treatment.

27 Jun 2012

New York Times examines bird flu studies, history of controversy

The New York Times examines several studies published in the journals Nature and Science looking at how the H5N1 bird flu virus could mutate to become more virulent among humans and outlines the history of controversy surrounding the studies.

27 Jun 2012

Heavily congested highway correlates with higher rates of asthma

Researchers at SUNY Downstate Medical Center and Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York, found that living near a heavily congested highway correlates with a higher presence of asthma.

27 Jun 2012

Tips to deal with insect stings

With the start of summer comes the appearance of common stinging insects, such as bees, wasps, hornets and yellowjackets, and the various related health risks that range from irritating but relatively harmless stings to the threat of serious allergic reaction. The National Pest Management Association (NPMA) stresses that when it comes to stinging insects, the best way to avoid the associated health risks is to practice simple prevention and treatment tips.

27 Jun 2012

New FIRS data reveals lack of understanding and concern among public about lung disease

New data released by the Forum of International Respiratory Societies (FIRS) to coincide with World Spirometry Day today has revealed a lack of understanding and concern among the public about the world's biggest killer - lung disease, which now claims the lives of almost 4 million people a year.

27 Jun 2012

Exposure to BBzP during pregnancy can increase risk of eczema in children

Prenatal exposure to a ubiquitous household chemical called butylbenzyl phthalate (BBzP) can increase a child's risk for developing eczema, according to research conducted at the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health at the Mailman School of Public Health.

26 Jun 2012

Some caregivers unsure about when to give epinephrine for children with food allergies

Young children with allergies to milk and egg experience reactions to these and other foods more often than researchers had expected, a study reports. The study also found that severe and potentially life-threatening reactions in a significant number of these children occur and that some caregivers are hesitant to give such children epinephrine, a medication that reverses the symptoms of such reactions and can save lives.

26 Jun 2012

Sunflower peptides can treat itchy skin problems

Sunflowers may hold the solution to a problem which gets under the skin of millions of Australians every year. Skin conditions such as eczema, dermatitis, rosacea and the lesser-known Netherton Syndrome pose an itchy problem for many sufferers world-wide, but a group of researchers from Queensland University of Technology (QUT), in Brisbane Australia, are looking at ways to soothe the problem - with tiny proteins called peptides, found in sunflowers.

26 Jun 2012

‘Strong evidence’ for causal link between parental smoking, childhood asthma

Parental smoking is associated with symptoms of asthma in exposed children, report researchers who found the more parents smoked, the greater the risk to their children.

25 Jun 2012

Uncontrolled symptoms of pediatric asthma found in 50% of children

Asthma is a serious disease that when left undertreated, can be deadly. In fact, asthma accounts for 4,000 deaths annually in the United States alone. And according to a new International Consensus (ICON) on Pediatric Asthma, an alarming 50 percent of children worldwide have uncontrolled symptoms, despite today's available treatments.

25 Jun 2012

Study reinforces importance of educating parents and other caregivers of children with food allergy

A team of researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine and four other institutions have found that young children with documented or likely allergies to milk and/or eggs, whose families were instructed on how to avoid these and other foods, still experienced allergic reactions at a rate of almost once per year. Of severe cases, less than a third received epinephrine, a medication used to counter anaphylaxis, a life-threatening allergic condition.

25 Jun 2012