Genetic Risk factors for Food Alergies

Food allergies is a medical condition that affects 32 million Americans. The range of expression is different for different individuals, but in some cases it can be  life- threatening -Anaphylaxis. Studies have attempted to examine the genetic role in the development of food allergies for quite some time now. In a resent study published in the journal Allergy and Clinical Immunology, researchers have linked a gene called  c11orf30/EMSY, which has been previously linked to other types of allergies to food allergies. Further finding of this study link EMSY to peanut allergy, which is a condition affecting many children.

The role of the environment in allergies  has been studied and confirmed in many studies, but there is not a lot of information about the genetic mechanism of the disease. Better understanding of the genetic component, will be helpful in identifying children at risk early, as well as develop more efficient medications for treatment.