eczema tagged posts

A protein in the immune system programmed to protect the body from fungal infections is also responsible for exacerbating the severity of certain autoimmune diseases such as irritable bowel disease (IBS), type 1 diabetes, eczema and other chronic disorders, new research from The Australian National University (ANU) has found.

The discovery could pave the way for new and more effective drugs, without the nasty side effects of existing treatments. In addition to helping to manage severe autoimmune conditions, the breakthrough could also help treat all types of cancer. The work has been published in Science Advances.

The scientists have discovered a previously unknown function of the protein, known as DECTIN-1, w...

A scientist demonstrates application of the experimental therapy to the inner elbow. For demonstration purposes, the bacteria solution has been replaced with purple dye. Credit: NIAID

Topical treatment with live Roseomonas mucosa – a bacterium naturally present on the skin – was safe for adults and children with atopic dermatitis (eczema) and was associated with reduced disease severity, according to initial findings from an ongoing early-phase clinical trial at the National Institutes of Health. Preclinical work in a mouse model of atopic dermatitis had suggested that R. mucosa strains collected from healthy skin can relieve disease symptoms. The new findings, published May 3 in JCI Insight, support further evaluation of this potential new therapy.

Atopic dermatitis is an inflammatory ski...

Two new medications have recently been approved for atopic dermatitis (AD).

Although many adults with atopic dermatitis (eczema) develop the disease in childhood and carry it through life, a large number are first diagnosed in adulthood. “Atopic dermatitis (AD) is underdiagnosed in the United States,” says allergist Luz Fonacier, MD, ACAAI board member and presenter at the meeting. “Many adults don’t seek out medical care, preferring to self-treat instead, either with home remedies or over-the-counter drugs. Often, they aren’t aware they have eczema, and they also don’t know treatments have changed a lot in the last few years. There are new drugs and topical medications that can make a huge difference in their quality of life.”

In addition to the itching and discomfort, people with eczema ...

Eczema, or atopic dermatitis, is an inflammatory skin condition that affects an estimated 30 percent of the U.S. population, mostly children and adolescents.NIAID

Researchers have identified mutations in a gene called CARD11 that lead to atopic dermatitis, or eczema, an allergic skin disease. Scientists from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, and other institutions discovered the mutations in four unrelated families with severe atopic dermatitis and studied the resulting cell-signaling defects that contribute to allergic disease. Their findings, reported in Nature Genetics, also suggest that some of these defects potentially could be corrected by supplementation with the amino acid glutamine.

The scientists analyzed the genetic sequences of patients with severe atopic dermatitis and identified 8 individuals from four families with mutations in the CARD11 gene, which provides instructions for production of a cell-signaling protein of the same name. While some people with these mutations had other health issues, such as infections, others did not, implying that mutations in CARD11 could cause atopic dermatitis without leading to other medical issues often found in severe immune system syndromes.

Each of the four families had a distinct mutation that affected a different region of the CARD11 protein, but all the mutations had similar effects on T-cell signaling. With cell culture and other laboratory experiments, the researchers determined that the mutations led to defective activation of two cell-signaling pathways, one of which typically is activated in part by glutamine.

Growing cultured T cells from patients with CARD11 mutations with excess glutamine boosted mTORC1 activation, a key part of one of the affected pathways, suggesting the potential to partially correct the cell-signaling defects that may contribute to atopic dermatitis. The scientists now are planning a study to assess the effect of supplemental glutamine and leucine, another amino acid that activates mTORC1, in people with atopic dermatitis with and without CARD11 mutations.
https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/scientists-identify-single-gene-mutations-lead-atopic-dermatitis