2023-06-15 18:00:00
A large majority of therapies for allergic asthma target inflammatory cytokines, which react to allergens and lead to overproduction of mucus, wheezing and difficulty breathing. Current allergy treatments can alleviate symptoms, but they only work when airway inflammation is present.
Allergens: the specific role of a protein in allergic reactions
In a recent study published in the journal Cell Reports, American scientists have developed a new approach to prevent allergen receptors from reacting. As part of this research, they used the LRC-TriCEPS technique, which makes it possible to determine the receptors in the cells in the event of an allergy to house dust mites, which can be responsible for asthma attacks.
The researchers then observed that the cellular protein LMAN1 plays a role in the body’s allergic reaction. “When we made this discovery, we wanted to know what this protein was. What was interesting is that people hadn’t paid much attention to this protein in the context of allergy or allergic asthma”said Dr. Justine Tigno-Aranjuez, lead author of the study and assistant professor of medicine at the University of Central Florida (United States).
A promising therapy to reduce allergy risks
The study authors found that house dust mite allergens and the LMAN1 protein can bind together on the cell surface to cause an inflammatory or allergic reaction. This research also uncovered that this binding was dependent on specific mannose sugar structures on dust mite allergens.
Many common allergens, such as pollen, are mannosylated, that is, modified by the addition of mannose sugar.“We think it’s not just dust mites, because many other allergens are mannosylated, but it could be a very broad receptor that recognizes many different allergens (…) If the we think of a potential therapy, by understanding how the LMAN1 protein recognizes mites and the consequences of this recognition, we could apply it to many other contexts, and this is what we are currently trying to explore”, said Dr. Justine Tigno-Aranjuez. The scientist and her team are currently conducting additional research to confirm this hypothesis, and potentially develop new therapies targeting the most common allergens.
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