In this study, the investigators identified changes in genes within a region on chromosome 5 that were highly associated with EoE. One of the genes in this region encodes a protein called thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP). When the investigators measured the expression levels of this gene in children with EoE, they found it was more highly expressed than in children without the disorder. This result suggests that TSLP plays some role in EoE.

TSLP is made by epithelial cells, which line internal and external surfaces of the body. It has already been described as a master switch that may turn on other allergic diseases, such as asthma and atopic dermatitis (eczema).

Future research is needed to determine if these findings might lead to a genetic test for TSLP and whether drugs that block the production or function of TSLP might be useful in treating EoE.

ARTICLE: ME Rothenberg et al. Common variants at 5q22 associate with pediatric eosinophilic esophagitis. Nature Genetics DOI: 10.1038/ng.547 (2010).

WHO: Matthew Fenton, Ph.D., Chief, Asthma, Allergy and Inflammation Branch, NIAID Division of Allergy, Immunology and Transplantation, is available to comment on this paper.

Source: NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases