Researchers Have Found a Way to “Turn Off” Peanut Allergies [* AC Friendly *]

upstart writes:

Immune changes can cause peanut allergy remission:

The potential of new, more focused allergy treatments is now possible thanks to the identification of the key immunological changes that allow the remission of peanut allergy in children.

For the first time, researchers discovered that particular gene networks are rewired to drive the transition from peanut allergy to clinical remission after combination treatment of a probiotic and peanut oral immunotherapy.

The research, led by the Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) and the Telethon Kids Institute, discovered that network reprogramming effectively shuts down the allergic immune response that causes a food allergy. The study was published in the journal Allergy.

[...] 62 Melbourne-based children with peanut allergies, ages 1 to 10, participated in the randomized controlled experiment. They were either given a placebo or a probiotic treatment that included oral immunotherapy (the progressive introduction of the allergenic food). After 18 months of treatment, 74% of patients receiving the combo therapy had remission, compared to 4% of those receiving a placebo.

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