Study shows that certain substances in fish oil could inhibit asthma, a chronic inflammatory disease affecting the airways in the lungs. The study is led by Richard Phipps at University of Rochester and published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation—Insight. A previous study has shown that supplementation with fish oil–derived fatty acids during pregnancy reduced the absolute risk of persistent wheeze or asthma and infections in offspring. The current study provides evidence to the beneficial effect of omega-3 fatty acid. They revealed that omega-3 fatty acid found in fish oil is able to decrease the production of IgE, an antibody that is involved in allergic asthma. However, for people with severe asthma on high-dose oral steroid treatment, the effect of omega-3 fatty acid is inhibited by corticosteroids. In previous work, Phipps' lab found that certain fatty acids in fish oil modulate B-cell function. For this work, they looked at their impact on B cell IgE production in asthma patients. One of the key treatments for asthma is steroid. Steroids are anti-inflammatory drugs that work by reducing inflammation, swelling, and mucus production in the airways. These drugs can ease symptoms effectively but cannot cure the disease. Moreover, steroids sometimes inhibit the body's own anti-inflammatory properties. Phipps and colleagues used B cells from the blood of asthmatic patients, most of whom were taking corticosteroids. The cells were treated with omega-3-derived products, and the levels of IgE antibodies were measured. The researchers found that the IgE levels were decreased. In addition, B-cells of patients who took oral steroids appeared to be less sensitive to the treatment. (Cusabio provides with high quality FITC conjugated antibody at attractive price.) Omega-3 fatty acids have been touted to have many health benefits. They show the potential to treat asthma and other inflammatory diseases. Now this study provides evidence for beneficial effect of the substances: omega-3 fatty acids could regulate human B cell IgE antibody production.
