Asthma: Root causes in children and adults
New on Genetic Lifehacks:
Asthma: A Combination of Genetic Susceptibility and Environmental Exposures
The heritability of asthma is about 60%, showing that it is a combination of genetic susceptibility and environmental exposures.
It turns out that asthma is a general term for hyperreactive airways - tightening of the lungs - that involves a number of different immune pathways. Researchers have come a long way in understanding the multiple types of asthma. I'm taking a deep dive into the genetics involved in different types of asthma, and I hope you'll share this article with anyone you know with breathing problems.
By the numbers:
The second most common way people find Genetic Lifehacks (after Google searches) is through a recommendation from a friend or family member. I love seeing that statistic! Would you do me a favor this month and tell someone - in person or online - about Genetic Lifehacks?
Growing and updating:
As the Genetic Lifehacks community grows, I'm running into capacity issues on my current website server. I'll be migrating the site to a new, larger server this weekend. There may be some brief downtime, but I'm hopeful that all will go well and the site won't be down for long during the move.
Coming soon:
Salt-sensitive blood pressure
Retinal detachment
Lewy body dementia
Manganese
Interesting new studies:
1) Star botanist likely made up data about nutritional supplements, new probe finds
This Science article details a years-long investigation that resulted in the retraction of a paper published in 2013 in the British Medical Journal. The paper claimed that many of the herbal supplements the researcher tested didn't contain what was on the label, with some containing toxic substances. Headlines in the NY Times and elsewhere in 2013 claimed "Herbal Supplements are Not What They Seem". Stores pulled the supplements from their shelves, and more than 600 research papers have now cited that BMJ study. In addition, the researcher who wrote the paper had started a supplement testing company (now defunct) to do certification for major supplement manufacturers like Nature's Way.
Well... it turns out that the researcher fabricated the data.
The Science article explains: " investigation has found “with high probability” that the scientist engaged in “data fabrication and falsification,” failed to acknowledge sources of data, and mismanaged conflicts of interest in three papers."
2. The histamine receptor H1 acts as an alternative receptor for SARS-CoV-2
Published in the American Society for Microbiology Journal, this new study shows that a histamine receptor can act as an entry point into cells for SARS-CoV-2. From the study: "In addition to human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) can utilize alternative cofactors to facilitate viral entry. In this study, we discovered that histamine receptor H1 (HRH1) not only functions as an independent receptor for SARS-CoV-2 but also synergistically enhances ACE2-dependent viral entry by directly interacting with ACE2. Further studies have demonstrated that HRH1 facilitates the entry of SARS-CoV-2 by directly binding to the N-terminal domain of the spike protein. Conversely, antihistamine drugs, primarily HRH1 antagonists, can competitively bind to HRH1 and thereby prevent viral entry. These findings revealed that the administration of repurposable antihistamine drugs could be a therapeutic intervention to combat coronavirus disease 19."
Graphical overviews for the new article (for all the visual learners):
