Interferon: Asthma’s Holy Grail?

Could there be a cure for asthma on the horizon? Depends on whom you ask and what they know. I’ve sat on both sides of the answer, but now investigators at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center seem to be onto something highly intriguing.

They’ve determined that interferon -- a protein used in the treatment of multiple sclerosis, hepatitis C and a variety of cancers -- blocks the production of Th2, cells known to cause inflammation leading to asthma and atopic dermatitis.

Normally, Th2 cells help protect against infections by secreting chemicals that bring on inflammation. However, Th2 cells tend to get carried away in some people -- causing them to over-react when exposed to otherwise harmless substances such as animal dander, pollens and pollutants. Like tapping the first in a long chain of dominoes -- once Th2 cells become reactive, a whole set of inflammatory chain reactions take place, causing common allergic diseases such as asthma and atopic dermatitis.

“This finding is incredibly important because humans are being treated with interferon for a variety of diseases, yet no one has tried treating asthma patients with interferon,” said J. David Farrar, MD, assistant professor of immunology and molecular biology at UT Southwestern and senior author of the study. “The current therapies for asthma are inhalers and steroids, both of which offer only temporary relief.”

Dr. Farrar says that in isolated human immune cells, interferon targets and blocks Th2 cells before and after they form. In effect, interferon removes the key domino from the lineup.
But at what doses, and which patients are candidates for therapy, and when will a therapy be ready for use in what ages of patients and… ? So many questions, so little time! That’s why we’re writing about this topic in the Winter 2010 issue of Allergy & Asthma Today. Do you have questions you’d like to ask Dr. Farrar about this study? Send them to editor@aanma.org.

The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Exxon Mobil.

An Update from our Friends in Haiti

We received the following update from Caleb and Debbie Lucien at Hosean International Ministries (HIM) in Pignon, Haiti. AANMA members and friends generously donated supplies to HIM, a nonprofit organization that has a large school campus and an orphanage -- HIM has taken in about 300 adults, teens and childrens since the earthquake. Caleb, director of HIM, and his wife, Debbie, are friends of AANMA and have children with asthma and respiratory issues. (Click here to see our original call to AANMA members to help.) Here is Debbie's note:

Thanks to all there at AANMA for all the hard work on our behalf here in Haiti. Just this past Thursday, a large cargo plane brought about two dozen boxes of supplies from AANMA contacts across the U.S. It was so amazing to me that people have responded so generously. These medications and clothing supplies were taken to our camp, categorized and are being distributed.

Currently, there are about 330 long-term residents at the camp. Some people come and go, but these 300 plus have settled in to at least finish the school year. About two-thirds of the residents are children and teens who have been sent by their families so they can complete school and find food. While it's been challenging taking on so many "foster kids," especially this group that has experienced its fair share of trauma, things are going reasonably well.

We've had a lot of volunteers come and give of their time and love to coordinate activities for them as well as invest in improving the camp facilities. Right now we are building better shower facilities etc. for them.

The majority of supplies we are receiving continue to go to the capital city area where the needs are extreme. Enclosed is a picture sent to me today by an American nurse volunteering in Port au Prince last week -- authorities are reporting there are over 400 "tent cities" like this now throughout the country.

It's humbling when I see how people are forced to live, and that even as rough as our camp facilities are, they are nice compared to the conditions most are living in. Please just encourage your members that the supplies they are sending are getting through and helping those in need.

We really appreciate you all!

Blessings, Debbie Lucien in Haiti

To ship items to Haiti, use this address:
Caleb Lucien/Hosean International (Relief Supplies)
3170 Airmans Drive, Unit 1076 HIM
Fort Pierce, FL 34946
To pay for shipping from the U.S. to Haiti, it’s helpful if you also send a check for $1.75/pound to the same address but in a separate envelope (the check could get lost if it’s shipped with the box).

Danish research: children born today are likely to live to the ripe old age of 100!

The question, in light of these findings: How well will our children with asthma fare throughout the next 90 years? How well will their lungs carry oxygen to their developing and subsequently aging hearts and brains? Will they have lung capacity sufficient to take walks and enjoy time with their great-grandchildren?

Is this good or bad news? The answer resides in the quality of one’s health and happiness, and in how well the planet is holding up then. The news about our children's expected longevity is all the more reason to protect and maintain healthy asthma-free airways in our children with asthma and allergic conditions today.

So much has changed in asthma care over the last two and a half decades since AANMA began in 1985. We now have a better understanding of the science, novel noninvasive diagnostic and monitoring tools as well as more effective and targeted medications with fewer unwanted side effects.

With a written asthma action plan - a strategy for overcoming, not coping with, symptoms - there is no reason we cannot usher our children born today into adulthood with healthy airways. Then, it will be up to them to use what we have taught them to stay healthy and active for 82 additional years!

Yes, it’s an awesome responsibility - but you’ve got help. AANMA has developed a new section of our website dedicated to families - PRECIOUS Breathers. The site is made possible through an AstraZeneca sponsorship (thank you!), and every word is written and produced by AANMA.

Not only will you find tried-and-true practical advice and create new friendships with families just like yours, you can ask questions through the Parent Support Center staffed by Carol Jones, RN AE-C. She knows your challenges - she spent the last “more than a couple of decades” working with families as an asthma and allergy nurse and is a certified asthma educator. She’s also experienced that whole family asthma boot camp thing with her husband, children and herself!

Check us out. You’ll be glad you did.

Asthma: No Laughing Matter

Laughter may be the best medicine unless your airways are raw with inflammation - the kind associated with asthma. Researchers in Australia found that as many as one in three people with asthma start wheezing, coughing or feeling short of breath when laughing!

Laughing asthma is really just another form of exercise-induced asthma and both are signs that airway inflammation is out of control and I'm not joking. Need more convincing evidence?

Your allergist can measure various aspects of lung function using a machine called a spirometer. But to know if allergic asthma is causing airway inflammation, there is a new test now approved by Blue Cross Blue Shield that measures exhaled nitric oxide (eNO), a by-product found in your breath (no, it doesn't smell bad) if your airways are inflamed. The test is non-invasive, easy to do for kids and adults. 

This new technology takes us just one step closer to customizing asthma action plans to meet your specific needs...such as laughing until your sides hurt but without asthma symptoms!

To learn more about eNO, visit AANMA's website and search eNO. You can also visit Aerocrine or Aperion websites. And no, they didn't pay for these links but if I'd asked them to help sponsor this blog, I would tell you that, too.