Skin biomarkers in infants may help predict early development of food allergies and atopic dermatitis (AD), according to research out of National Jewish Health in Denver.
The study, which appears in the March 2024 issue of the Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology, found that abnormal lipids, microbes and proteins on infant’s skin can predict the development of food allergies or AD, and now researchers are working to develop an anti-inflammatory cream that can stop these conditions in their tracks.
For the study, skin tape strips were collected from the forearms of newborns at the age of two months. The superficial proteins on the skin and the lipids bind to the tape, and then the tape was extracted to study the details of what is found on the skin. Children were clinically monitored until they turned two to see if allergies would develop.
“If there were abnormal lipids and abnormal proteins on the skin, that is an early sign of what can eventually lead to AD and food allergies,” says study author Evgeny Berdyshev, PhD, a researcher at National Jewish Health in Denver, in a news release.
“Ultimately, we want to identify people at risk for food allergy and address skin barrier abnormalities early to prevent the development of these conditions,” adds Donald Leung, MD, head of the Division of Pediatric Allergy & Immunology in the Department of Pediatrics at National Jewish Health, and senior author of the study.
“This is just the first step,” says Dr. Leung. “We now have a biomarker for atopic dermatitis and food allergy – the abnormality is abnormal lipids, microbes, and proteins. We are now testing newborn babies to determine whether we can prevent this abnormality. We put a lipid cream on the skin of the study participants, so it hopefully can penetrate the skin and infuse it with fatty acids. We are working to develop an anti-inflammatory cream as a result of this study.”
Now, Researchers at National Jewish Health are recruiting expectant mothers and babies 0-12 weeks old for participation in the ongoing study. National Jewish Health is one of four sites worldwide for this study, called SEAL which means “Stop Eczema and Allergy.”
For more information, please visit https://www.nationaljewish.org/clinical-trials/seal-study-stopping-eczema-and-allergy
