Health News : Potential cancer drug may offer new hope for asthma patients

Potential cancer drug may offer new hope for asthma patients
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admin on 15/12/2009 16:21:00
 
Scientists at the University of Edinburgh found that the drug - R-Roscovitine -
helps to kill certain immune cells which can exacerbate symptoms associated with
asthma.
The findings could lead to an alternative way to treat asthma in patients who
are resistant to steroids, which are commonly used in asthma treatments.
Researchers studied the effect that the drug had on immune cells known as
eosinophils
Eosinophils, found in the lungs and airways, help the body fight off parasitic
infection. However, too many uncontrolled eosinophils can damage other cells
that line the lung, contributing to inflammatory conditions such as asthma.
Researchers found that use of the drug caused the eosinophil cells to undergo a
form of cell death known as apoptosis, a natural process where unwanted cells
are removed from the body.
Professor Adriano Rossi, of the Centre for Inflammation Research at the
University of Edinburgh who directed the study, said: "Steroids are commonly
used to treat asthma but can have unwanted side-effects, while some asthma
patients are also resistant to steroid treatment. It may well be that use of a
drug, such as R-Roscovitine, or one that works in a similar same way, could
offer an alternative to steroids, or be used in conjunction with steroid
treatment for asthma patients."
The research has been published in the journal FEBS Letters.
For more information contact
Tara Womersley, Press and PR office, Tel: +44 (0)7791 355804 Email:
Tara.Womersley@ed.ac.uk
Tara Womersley
Press and PR Office
University of Edinburgh
0131 650 9836
07791 355 804