Finding foods that are nutritious and taste good to a one year old is a challenge for any parent. Add in the fact the child has life-threatening food allergies and the difficulties only increase. In 2016 that was the situation that Denise Woodard found herself in. With 8% of children in the US have food allergies, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Woodard knew that she couldn’t be the only one, that’s why founded Partake Foods. From experimenting in her kitchen, trying to develop a good tasting, good-for-you snack, to the challenges that many black female entrepreneurs encounter as they begin their start up, Woodard’s story is one of perseverance and success.
In 2016, Denise Woodard, CEO and founder of Partake Foods, was frustrated by the lack of food options with the nutritional profile that she required and the taste appeal to her one-year-old daughter, Vivienne, who had life-threatening food allergies.
When a person experiences an anaphylaxis attack, an epinephrine auto-injector is how treatment is provided. Now what if there was an easier, maybe even more effective way to administer epinephrine? That is what Aquestive Therapeutics is currently working on. Their surveys indicate that the majority of patients would be interested in replacing their current medical device with a sublingual emergency epinephrine and that it would be easier to administer during an emergency situation when compared to their current medical device.
Aquestive Therapeutics held an investor webcast yesterday to update the public on the current status of their sublingual emergency epinephrine candidate. Rather than a jab to the thigh with an auto-injector when anaphylaxis is suspected, the company hopes to offer a small strip that when placed under the tongue, releases epinephrine as it dissolves.
What if the “cure” for some autoimmune allergies like asthma and life threatening anaphylaxis could be found in our own bodies? That is what researchers from the Australian National University (ANU) may have discovered in the protein called neuritin. The role of this natural protein plays in the brain and nervous system has been known for years but five years ago researchers began to look at the role it may play in the immune system. The results are promising and researchers hope that they may be the basis for new treatments.
Researchers have discovered a function in the immune system that could hold the key to treating allergic conditions like asthma and stop life-threatening anaphylaxis.
Experts from The Australian National University (ANU) have unearthed a natural way the body prevents autoimmune disease and allergies. The process is driven by a protein in the body called neuritin.
“We found this absolutely fascinating mechanism of our own bodies that stops the production of rogue antibodies that can cause either autoimmunity or allergies,” senior author, ANU Professor Carola Vinuesa, said.
"It’s been known for years that neuritin has a role in the brain and in the nervous system but we found an abundance of neuritin in the immune system and its mechanism – which has never been described in biology.
With Summer comes warm weather and with warm weather comes Bees, along with other insects, wasps, yellow jackets. Insect stings are painful, annoying and possibly life threatening. What to do if you get stung? How do I know if I’m having an allergic reaction (5% of the population is allergic to insects) and how do I prevent stings? The answers to these and other questions can be found in the following article.
You may not be aware of an allergy until you're stung.
Summer's the season for gardening, playing outside, back yard picnics and just enjoying the outdoors. It's also the season of bee and other insect stings. According to the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, about 5% of the population is allergic to insect stings. But most people aren't aware of their allergy until they're stung.
Reactions to insect stings (wasps, bees, hornets) range in severity from minor to potentially fatal. In most cases, bee and other stings are only annoying, causing a brief, sharp pain along with slight swelling and redness. Home treatment is all that's necessary to ease the pain. But if you're allergic or get stung numerous times, a more severe reaction (anaphylaxis) may require emergency attention.
As corona virus vaccines start becoming more available, getting everyone vaccinated is of vital importance. In our interview with Dr. James Baker, the former CEO and CMO of Food Allergy Research and Education (FARE), Dr. Baker addresses many concerns within the allergy community. Reporter Kristen Steward and the doctor discuss the effectiveness, safety AND necessity of everyone being vaccinated.
Looking at his bio it sure looks like Dr. James Baker has done it all. He has worked in the government and academia, in small pharma and big pharma. He also spent five years as the CEO and CMO of Food Allergy Research and Education (FARE). Yet when I told him he'd done an amazing amount of work he modestly answered, "I guess that’s how it appears when you get old."
This same combination of humility and sense of humor is apparent in his brief self-description at the bottom of his posts on Pandemic Pondering: A Daily Blog, the website he began when COVID-19 hit last March — immunologist, former Army MD, former head of allergy and clinical immunology at University of Michigan, vaccine developer and opinionated guy. It takes navigating to the site's About page to find out he has published more than 300 peer-reviewed publications, is an inventor on 50 patents, has founded four companies and had many other accomplishments that are too numerous to list.
