Scientists Spot Treatment Target For Severe Asthma

Blocking a powerful immune system compound called tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) may prove an effective way to treat severe asthma, according to a small study in the current issue of the journal Thorax. About one in 10 people with asthma has a severe form of the disease, which correlates with relatively large amounts of circulating TNF alpha. TNF alpha is also found in a number of chronic inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and Crohn's disease. The study, led by researchers at Southampton General Hospital in England, included 26 healthy people, 67 people with mild asthma and 51 people with severe asthma. Bronchial fluid and lung tissue samples showed that TNF alpha levels were much higher in the people with severe asthma and that the TNF was concentrated in mast cells, which are immune cells that play a role in the asthmatic inflammatory reaction.