Osteoporosis drug may treat asthma

Thursday April 23rd, 2015

A failed drug for osteoporosis could be the key to an improved treatment for asthma, researchers revealed last night.

The drugs, known as calcilytics, tackle a single receptor, which, Welsh researchers say, plays a fundamental role in asthma symptoms.

The receptor, known as CaSR - or calcium sensing receptor, is behind symptoms including inflammation and narrowing of the airways and twitchiness, researchers at Cardiff University found.

The charity Asthma UK said the finding was "hugely exciting."

The research was published in Science Translational Medicine.

The drugs were developed to treat osteoporosis 15 years ago but proved to be ineffective.

The researchers say they hope human trials could begin within two years.

Researcher Professor Daniela Riccardi said: “For the first time we have found a link between airways inflammation, which can be caused by environmental triggers - such as allergens, cigarette smoke and car fumes – and airways twitchiness in allergic asthma.

“Our paper shows how these triggers release chemicals that activate CaSR in airway tissue and drive asthma symptoms like airway twitchiness, inflammation, and narrowing.

"Using calcilytics, nebulized directly into the lungs, we show that it is possible to deactivate CaSR and prevent all of these symptoms.”

Dr Samantha Walker, of Asthma UK, said: “If this research proves successful we may be just a few years away from a new treatment for asthma, and we urgently need further investment to take it further through clinical trials.

"Asthma research is chronicly underfunded; there have only been a handful of new treatments developed in the last 50 years so the importance of investment in research like this is absolutely essential.”

Calcium-sensing receptor antagonists abrogate airways hyperresponsiveness and inflammation in allergic asthma. Science Translational Medicine 22 April 2015

Tags: Allergies & Asthma | Pharmaceuticals | UK News

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