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Allergies Research Although a variety of therapies have been developed to treat asthma and allergies, we still do not fully understand certain critical aspects of these diseases. To develop more effective therapies and devise methods for preventing these illnesses, researchers are attempting to discern how the immune system recognizes an allergen, why people respond differently to allergens, as well as what environmental, genetic, and other factors might be responsible for allergic diseases. Allergy to latex has become an increasingly important health problem, especially among medical personnel who wear latex gloves to reduce exposure to human immunodeficiency virus, which causes AIDS, and hepatitis B virus. Although we know proteins derived from latex cause allergic reactions, better understanding of the structure and immunologic function of these proteins would help scientists devise ways to eliminate the cause of these potentially dangerous reactions. NIAID-funded scientists have been at the forefront of discoveries and advances in the field of allergy. They were the first to identify the IgE antibody that is the key to the allergic response. NIAID intramural investigators and NIAID-supported investigators have now identified the complete structure of the IgE receptor, the molecule on the surface of mast cells and basophils to which IgE antibodies attach. (Mast cells in the tissues and basophils in the blood are cells that together cause allergy symptoms.) Blocking the function of the IgE receptor may eventually lead to a new therapy for allergies. Investigators have studied the events that occur after allergic reactions are initiated by allergen binding to IgE antibody on mast cells and basophils. Perhaps the most important breakthrough in studying allergic reactions is the identification by NIAID investigators of the biologic events responsible for the late phase reaction (LPR). (LPR usually occurs 4 to 6 hours after an allergen has entered the body.) The discovery that these late reactions involve inflammatory cells and that they resemble allergic reactions has led to the recent recognition that inflammation is a central feature of allergic diseases and asthma. This knowledge has provided a significant focus to asthma research--how the inflammation is produced, how it is regulated, and how it can be prevented. In addition, NIAID investigators discovered that inhaled corticosteroids inhibit LPR. That discovery contributed to the growing use of these drugs to successfully treat both allergy and asthma. The inflammatory process is highly complex, but the insights that have emerged highlight and expand this exciting area of research. One major key to this process is a group of powerful chemicals called cytokines, which are produced by certain cells of the immune system and which help regulate cell growth and function, including IgE antibody production and allergic and asthmatic inflammation. Substantial progress has been made recently in understanding how these chemicals are involved in most aspects of the development and function of inflammation. Research studies have opened the door for developing promising alternative and innovative therapies such as new anti-inflammatory drugs and agents that block the actions of cytokines.
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