Researchers at Case Western Reserve University have made a breakthrough discovery that may lead to new treatment options for asthma and other inflammatory diseases.

For decades, molecules called “leukotrienes” – chemicals that are released from white blood cells when the airways are inflamed or an allergen is inhaled – were thought to trigger inflammatory diseases. As a result, treatments sought to target these specific molecules by blocking receptors they would normally attach to.

Led by Dr. Robert Salomon, the Charles Frederic Mabery Professor of Research in Chemistry, the research team found that molecules with a similar structure but originate from a different chemical pathway in the body may actually be the cause of inflammation. These molecules have been named by the team “pseudo leukotrienes.”

During their study, Salomon and his colleagues obtained urine samples from patients diagnosed with mild or severe asthma and compared them to urine from non-asthmatic controls. Psuedo leukotrienes were found in greater quantities in the asthma patients’ urine than in the controls’.

The researchers plan to investigate whether pseudo leukotrienes are involved in other inflammatory respiratory diseases.

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