Could A Gut Parasite Hold The Cure For Asthma? UK

Main Category: Respiratory / Asthma
Article Date: 11 Mar 2008 - 1:00 PDT

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Asthma UK is funding research which aims to demonstrate that being infected with a gut parasite reduces the likelihood of developing asthma.

The research, led by British researcher Professor John Britton, of the University of Nottingham, along with Dr Gail Davey and colleagues at Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia, will study over 1,000 children born in urban and rural areas of Butajira in southern Ethiopia to see whether infection of the gut with either hook worms or other gut parasites protects against developing asthma later in life.

Gut parasites, like the hookworm, have evolved ways of surviving the host's immune system by dampening it down. The suggestion is that this mechanism also dampens the host's immune responses to other invading bodies, such as the allergens that trigger asthma symptoms, thereby lessening the risk of fatal asthma attacks.

Britton has pioneered research in this area but this will be his first piece of research to study the relationship between asthma and gut parasite infection from birth, recording if and at which age the children become infected with parasites, what type of parasites they are infected with and the extent of the infection. The team will then be able to explore the relation between infection and the occurrence of asthma, allergy and eczema symptoms.

There are 5.2 million people in the UK with asthma, over half of whom suffer symptoms so severe their daily lives are impaired. In the UK over 200 people a day are admitted to hospital with asthma with symptoms ranging from debilitating breathlessness to attacks so severe they cannot speak. Tragically 4 people a day die from the condition.

Professor Britton's research will tell us more about how and why asthma develops and the mechanisms behind it. This will provide a vital tool in understanding asthma and could lead to the development of new therapeutic approaches to treating the condition, mimicking the action of the gut parasites to reduce asthma sufferers' sensitivity to asthma triggers.

Additionally this research could have major implications for parasite eradication programmes currently underway in Africa, as interestingly the nations which have eradicated parasitic worm infections; the UK, USA, Australia and New Zealand, are also the countries with the highest rates of asthma in the world.

Dr Leanne Male, Assistant Director of Research at Asthma UK says: 'We are extremely pleased to be funding this study which should tell us more about how and why asthma develops and could potentially identify new ways to prevent asthma from occurring in the first place.

'Asthma can develop at any age and it is incredibly difficult to identify exactly what causes it. The UK has one of the highest rates of asthma in the world, whereas countries in Africa, like Ethiopia, have traditionally had much lower rates. Now asthma is on the rise in parts of Africa too and this study will examine the reasons for this, also shedding light on why the UK has such a high prevalence.'

Professor John Britton, of the University of Nottingham comments: 'This research is groundbreaking because it provides a unique opportunity to look at the effects of hookworm infection from birth. We have good evidence of protection in adults but don't know when the critical period for infection is. If we can find that out, we can start to look for the mechanisms that might allow us to turn this to wider therapeutic benefit'

Notes

1. Asthma UK is the major funder of asthma research in the UK. Each year we spend approximately £3 million on research which includes project grants, four fellows, and two professors.

2. In 2006, Asthma UK spent more than the UK Government on research into asthma

3. Asthma UK is the charity dedicated to improving the health and well-being of the 5.2 million people in the UK whose lives are affected by asthma. For up-to-date news on asthma, information and publications, visit the Asthma UK website http://www.asthma.org.uk

4. For independent and confidential advice on asthma, call the Asthma UK Adviceline, which is staffed by asthma nurse specialists. It is open weekdays from 9am to 5pm on 08457 01 02 03. Or email an asthma nurse at http://www.asthma.org.uk/adviceline

http://www.asthma.org.uk

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