A cure for coughing is in the offing, thanks to scientist who have identified the process that leads to the reflux.
Coughing has largely remained a mystery to science. Now a team in Britain has found that the problem actually lies in the receptors on nerve endings in the lungs which react to irritants.
For victims of persistent coughing in which no useful purpose is being served, the receptors on these nerve endings are repeatedly prompting the cough reflux.
If those receptors are blocked , coughing could be stopped, according to the scientists from Britain”s National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London Hull University.
Lead scientist Maria Belvisi of the National Heart and Lung Institute and Imperial College said: “ For some people , chronic coughing can be annoying and uncomfortable, but for others it can be distressing and can have a severe impact on their quality of life.
Many people say that certain things in the air can make them cough and we are very excited that we have shown , for the first time, exactly what is probably happening inside the lungs.
Now that we think we have cracked the mechanism , we can start investigating whether we can stop people from coughing excessively by blocking the receptor protein that triggers it “
In their research , involving guinea pigs and human volunteers , the scientists showed that irritants in the air - including cigarette smoke and air pollution – switch on the receptor proteins in the lung nerve endings called TRPAI. This in turn causes the cough reflux. , the Daily mail reported.
When the TRPAI receptors were blocked in guinea pigs using drugs, their coughing responses to stimulants including a key compound in cigarette smoke was reduced. Nerves taken from mice , pigs and humans were also used to back up the research, as were reactions by human volunteers.