An Italian researcher in the UK has found a molecule which is resistant to food allergies and offers a potential target for therapy.
Scientists led by Dr Claudio Nicoletti at the Institute of Food Research in Norwich have found that a molecule called Interleukin-12 (IL-12) is absent during allergic responses.
IL-12 has been shown to be "missing" in mice which were bred to be allergic to peanuts.
There is currently no way to treat food allergies and the only way for sufferers to manage the problem is to avoid certain foods and make sure they have injectable adrenaline at hand.
An allergic reaction to peanuts is one of the most well-known food allergies.
Peanut allergy is becoming increasingly common, affecting one in 70 schoolchildren.
Other common allergies are to milk, eggs and fish. About 7% of the Italian population have such allergies.
The results published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology suggest that the molecule normally stops allergies to food developing.
"A food protein can be perfectly harmless to one person and lethal to another," said Dr Nicoletti.
"We have identified the missing molecule that normally keeps immune responses under control and appropriate".
Having a food allergy means that the immune system responds to a food protein as if it was harmful.
The immune system produces antibodies which normally help the body fight parasites.
Swollen lips and skin rashes are the most common results of eating the 'wrong' food but there can be more serious consequences such as difficulty in breathing.
REACTIONS CAN BE LIFE-THREATENING.
In the most severe cases individuals can suffer life-threatening reactions, including anaphylactic shock.
The research was carried out in collaboration with the University of Siena, where Nicoletti graduated before moving to the United States and then Britain.
"We have identified a molecule that is very important for the regulation of immune response and for the first time clearly represents a potential target for the therapy of allergy," Nicoletti said.
"This is currently under investigation".
Siena University's Eugenio Bertelli told ANSA: "We believe that in the future, treatment with Interleukin-12 or similar molecules could provide a way of blocking food allergies".
Giovanni Cavagni, head of the Allergology unit at Rome's Bambino Gesu' paediatric hospital, said:
"While recognising the value of the discovery I should remain cautious about its applications because we often find that studies which are very promising at a pre-clinical level turn out to be disappointing when you bring them to the clinical stage".
Cavagni added that his unit had achieved "major" results in inducing tolerance to food by moving very slowly from tiny quantities to normal ones.
