Sugared polymer 'may help against asthma and allergies'

Over five million people in the UK suffer from asthma, with children being more likely to have the condition, and for many it means carrying an inhaler at all times.

However, new US research may give hope to sufferers, as well as the millions of people worldwide who suffer from allergies.

According to experts at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland, a type of sugared polymer may hold the key to treating both asthma and allergies.

Experts at the facility told private health cover holders that the key cause of allergies is a unique protein known as Siglec-8, which is present on the surfaces of some types of immune cells and has roles in normal immune function and allergic diseases.

Dr Bruce Bochner, director of the division of allergy and clinical immunology at the facility, explained: "When functioning correctly, they are a valuable aid to keeping the body healthy and infection-free. However, in allergic reactions and asthma attacks, the cells unleash an overwhelming response that typically harms the body more than it helps."

Now, a team led by Dr Bochner believe they have found a way to kill Siglec-8, by using a sugared polymer to bind the protein and prevent it from having an adverse effect on sufferers.

The expert told medical health insurance customers that this may now lead to new developments in the fight against asthma and severe allergies.

"This is initial proof that delivering the sugar through a polymer can give you the desired result of selectively engaging Siglec-8 and killing [white blood cells], but we still have a long way to go," he explained.

As asthma attacks cost the UK an estimated £1.2 billion in lost productivity, £850 million in medical treatment and a further £161 million in social security costs, Dr Bochner said that further studies will now focus on using the sugared polymer on a wider scale to test its effectiveness.

By Stephen Tate

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