A possible cure for asthma will be available in about five years as scientists have found the root cause of the disease. There are millions of people suffering from asthma and they just pacify the condition through maintenance of inhalers and other medicines and many of them do not respond to these treatment methods.
The scientists from the Cardiff University, King's College London, and the Mayo Clinic in the United States have identified a protein, calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR), found in the airways that triggers all asthma attacks. Mail online reports that a drug is already present that can be used to deactivate the protein and reverse the asthma attack. Ironically, the scientists believe that a now available drug for osteoporosis can help in curing asthma.
The first clinical trial is set to start in the next two years. "The results of the study is incredibly exciting. If we can prove that calcilytics are safe when administered directly to the lung in people, then in five years we could be in a position to treat patients and potentially stop asthma from happening in the first place," said Principal investigator, Daniela Riccardi from Cardiff University School of Biosciences as reported by The Irish Examiner.
The tests done showed that people with asthma has higher levels of the said protein than healthy people and when they would breath allergens or triggers such as dust, smoke or pollen, the CaSR would trigger a rapid increase of calcium in the cells of the lungs. Calcium would make the cells contract and spasms to take place in the airways.
Fifteen years ago, the osteoporotic drug, calcilytic, was used to target the same protein. However, though it was proven to be safe, it was not effective for people with osteoporosis but when used in lung tissues, it has shown promise.
Statistics say that one in 12 people (about 25 million, or 8% of the U.S. population) had asthma in 2009, compared with 1 in 14 (about 20 million, or 7%) in 2001. More than half (53%) of people with asthma had an asthma attack in 2008. Moreover, WHO added that an estimated 300 million people worldwide suffer from asthma, with 250,000 annual deaths attributed to the disease.