A study on treating eczema flare-ups through customized vaccines has been released.
The research concept of treating eczema flare-ups through a customized vaccine has been published in JCI Insight.
Eczema, or atopic dermatitis, is an ailment suffered by one in four children in Ireland. The inflammatory skin condition accompanies itching and can lead to severe infections if a bacterial infection occurs. Although rare, eczema can lead to systemic diseases like sepsis, threatening the lives of young children.
A multidisciplinary research team composed of experts in medicine, statistics, computer science, and other fields conducted the study on 93 children, some over 16 years old.
The research team analyzed the differences in immune responses between three groups: a group with eczema and confirmed Staphylococcus aureus skin infection, a group with eczema but no skin infection, and a group without eczema.
The researchers found significant differences between the groups regarding T cells and other biomarkers. They explained that the immune response of eczema patients is most significantly affected, especially when some T cells are suppressed. The researchers added that identifying these common immune characteristics in patients with eczema provides an initial guide to developing treatments that can effectively target and alleviate recurrent eczema flare-ups.
However, the study’s lead author, Professor Rachel Mary Mc Loughlin, emphasized the need for follow-up studies to see if consistent responses are shown in more significant subgroups with greater age and racial diversity to broaden the scope of the results.
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