Numerous studies have found that children brought up in farms tend to develop resistance to allergies and asthma, as stated in Nature; but just recently, researchers from Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie (VIB) and Ghent University in Belgium discovered that it's because of farm dust.
Research findings now appear in the journal Science and it showed how farm dust can potentially offer protection against asthma and allergies.
For the study, researchers allowed mice to be exposed to endotoxins — molecules coming from dying bacteria present in cow manure and farm dust — for a period of two weeks.
Then the researchers introduced dust mites to the mice to trigger an allergic response. The experiment revealed that those mice exposed to the endotoxins did not react to the allergen, while those that weren't exposed to the endotoxins experienced asthma as an allergic response.
With further examination, researchers discovered that a protein called A20 found in lung tissue may have been responsible for the protective response seen in mice exposed to the dust.
To establish the findings involving A20, researchers had to inactivate A20 in the lungs of the rodents.
When these rodents were introduced to the endotoxins, they developed asthma, suggesting that the protection offered by farm dust may not be activated if A20 is absent.
The discovery was also taken to human trials and results showed that those who have asthma and allergies commonly lack the protein A20, which is why they can react severely to different allergens.
According to Professor Bart Lambrecht of VIB and Ghent University, the team tested the findings on 2,000 children who grew up on farms and discovered majority of them were protected from allergies and asthma.
"Those who are not protected and still develop allergies have a genetic variant of the A20 gene which causes the A20 protein to malfunction," Lambrecht said, according to Science Daily.
The team concluded that their discovery should open up the possibilities of future studies involving asthma, allergies, and the protein.
Currently, they are working on the identification of the primary component of farm dust that offers the protection. When this is identified, the next step is to focus on developing a preventive formulation for asthma.
