Food Allergy Research Funded at National Jewish Health

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Commits $42.7 Million Over Seven Years For Consortium of Food Allergy Research

National Jewish Health researchers will continue seeking treatments to cure and prevent food allergies as part of the Consortium of Food Allergy Research (CoFAR), thanks to $42.7 million in funding announced recently by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. National Jewish Health is one of seven research groups in CoFAR, the only one in Colorado. 
 

COFAR has been continuously funded since 2005. The current funding will support research for seven more years, through 2024. Previous research has demonstrated clinical benefit of immunotherapy for egg and peanut allergies. Researchers continue to seek optimal doses and delivery vehicles.

The National Jewish Health team is led by Donald Leung, MD, PhD, head of pediatric allergy & clinical immunology. Upcoming trials will include evaluation of oral immunotherapy in younger children. Researchers also plan trials to understand mechanisms involved in different types of food allergy and to introduce new forms of treatment for food allergy. Researchers at National Jewish are also studying the skin barrier of patients with atopic dermatitis to learn if cracks in their skin that allow food particles from the environment to enter the body might be a cause of food allergies.