A hookworm-secreted protein has potential therapeutic value for human allergy

Recently, the Australian Institute of Tropical Medicine and Health scientists find the protein AIP-2 which can strongly inhibit immune response from the hookworm-secreted proteins through recombinant human proteins. The respiratory cell studies of animal asthma models and human allergic patients both proved that the protein has a strong anti-inflammatory effect. AIP-2 can reduce the dendritic cells co-stimulator expression and can inhibit human T cell proliferation. It was found that this protein secreted by human parasitic hookworm may be a powerful anti-inflammatory molecule, which may bring new strategies for the treatment of autoimmune diseases such as allergies. The study was recently published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

Now, scientists' understanding about hookworms has evolved from enemies into human-disease-fighting allies, and these parasites may have molecules that cure disease. Sporadic studies of Crohn's disease and celiac disease, as well as some patient-selected parasite treatments, suggest that these parasites have molecules that can alleviate autoimmune diseases. Immunologist Severine Navarro from James Cook University at Australia are looking for disease treatment molecules in the insects. Her research which suggests that anti-inflammatory protein AIP-2 is one of them. AIP-2 inhibits airway inflammation in a murine model of asthma. This molecule also inhibits the proliferation of lymphocytes in the blood of human allergic patients.

The key to this study was the work of the molecular parasitologist AlexLoukas, which demonstrated that the molecule was not a component of the worm itself, but rather a molecule secreted by these hookworms. The researchers will hook worms in the culture dish, and then freeze the worms and these worms to swim the liquid, worm worms crushed and culture fluid were injected to asthma animals. It was found that these cultures were more effective than the parasites themselves, suggesting that anti-inflammatory molecules are mainly the secretion of these insects or excretion of components. One of Navarro's students demonstrated this phenomenon with an animal model of colitis. They used asthma mice to verify this effect. It was found that the effect of this culture medium on asthmatic asthma was astonishing. The latest study conducted proteomics analysis on the composition of this culture medium and found about 100 kinds of proteins from the liquid, of which AIP-2 is the most abundant ingredients. Navarro et al. continued the analysis of this molecule. Since the amount of this protein from the culture medium is very limited, they analyzed the protein sequence and then used molecular biology techniques to make more such molecules. Using this molecule to treat asthma mice, the results found that this molecule can have a significant effect on lung function and immune function. Navarro himself said that almost all animals can be cured of asthma.

They also found that AIP-2 mainly play an anti-inflammatory effect through the regulation of different immune cell balance, such as T lymphocytes and dendritic cells. AIP-2 can also inhibit the proliferation of T lymphocytes in human allergic patients, indicating that this molecule has potential therapeutic value for human allergy. Flarebio offers recombinant proteins of good quality such as recombinant CDH2 at great prices.