UConn Professor Patents Novel Food Allergy Treatment

STORRS, CT — A University of Connecticut professor has a patent on a novel food allergy treatment in a study that had some spice to it.

Nutritional sciences professor Clinton Mathias has discovered a potential new treatment for allergic reactions in a study centered on curcumin, the active ingredient in the curry spice tumeric.

While working with a colleague from Western New England University, Mathias learned that curcumin had potent inhibitory effects on the development of food allergy in mice.

When the rodents were exposed to curcumin during an allergic reaction, they did not develop allergic symptoms, according to the study.

The team published its findings in Frontiers in Immunology in 2020.

The patent for the technology was granted earlier this year and Quercis Pharmaceuticals has obtained a license for it.

Western New England University is the assignee for the patent.

The protective effects were exerted by directly targeting a major immune culprit during food allergy reactions, the mast cell, and suppressing its activity. Thiol isomerases play critical roles in the functioning of cells and are important for their activity and survival. They play key roles in the folding of cellular proteins and are known to promote the activity of platelets and control blood clotting reactions, Mathias said. The team investigated whether curcumin may also block the function of thiol isomerases.

More research is forthcoming, the team said.

See more on the research on the UConn Today site.