Inhaling Sugar Can Help Fight Lung Infections -Scientists Say
Scientists say inhaling sugar could be a way to tackle lung infections. Scientists at Manchester University made the discovery while investigating white blood cells called macrophages, which remove harmful organisms from the immune system.
The Manchester University team said macrophages in the lungs need the right level of glucose to function properly.
Stimulating the cells with more sugar might help the immune system fight off bronchial infections responsible for coughing fits and pneumonia, they say in the journal Nature Immunology. Lead scientist Professor Andrew MacDonald, from the University of Manchester, said;
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“It is possible that provision of glucose could increase inflammation to help protect against some lung infections.
It’s reasonable to suggest that short-term inhalation therapy might one day work as such a treatment. Respiratory illnesses cause terrible suffering in both the developing and developed world.
Hundreds of people are admitted to hospital every day in the UK with asthma attacks, while potentially deadly parasitic infections in the lungs are endemic across much of Africa and Asia.
The idea that modifying glucose levels in the lungs could one day be a critical factor in treatment of these conditions is tremendously exciting. Clearly we now need to study the impact of glucose on human lung macrophages.”
