Tuesday 5 July 2022 02:03 AM New drug could help ease breathing problems trends now
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A new drug could help millions with lung conditions such as asthma and emphysema, which cause symptoms ranging from coughing to severe breathing difficulties.
The drug blocks excess mucus production in the respiratory tract. Mucus plays a crucial role in keeping our lungs and airways healthy by maintaining moisture and trapping particles such as dust and microbes which might cause irritation or infection.
Tiny hair-like cells called cilia, which move in a wave-like motion, then transport the mucus containing unwanted microbes and other substances out of the body in phlegm.
A new drug could help millions with lung conditions such as asthma and emphysema, which cause symptoms ranging from coughing to severe breathing difficulties
But people with conditions such as asthma, viral infections, cystic fibrosis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) — an umbrella term for chronic lung conditions, including emphysema — can produce too much mucus.
In some cases this can lead to a life-threatening build-up of it that can entirely obstruct the airway.
Current treatments include steroid inhalers to dampen down the inflammation which promotes mucus build-up in those with asthma, and mucus-thinning medication for those with COPD and cystic fibrosis.
But now scientists have discovered an alternative.
The experimental drug, called PEN-SP9, blocks the effect of a protein involved in the over-production of mucus.
The drug was
