ighting hay fever with a plant extract – this works, as was shown in a clinical study conducted by researchers of the Center of Allergy & Environment (ZAUM) of Helmholtz Zentrum München and Technische Universität München. Allergic symptoms were alleviated significantly better than with the usual histamine receptor antagonists. In a paper published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology the scientists explained how this plant extract works and how effective it is.
Photo: Dr. Ingrid Weichenmeier, ZAUM
Antihistamine medications were hitherto considered the treatment of choice to alleviate the symptoms of hay fever sufferers. Now, in a randomized double-blind study, Dr. Adam Chaker and Prof. Dr. Carsten Schmidt-Weber demonstrated that the plant extract Ze 339 (Petasol butenoate complex) combats nasal mucosa swelling faster and more effectively.
Apparently, however, the extract not only works in acute cases – “Our data indicate that the extract also has a preventive effect, which must be investigated further,” said Dr. Schmidt-Weber, head of the Center of Allergy & Environment (ZAUM) in Munich. The results look promising for improving the quality of life of people with allergies.
So far the plant extract has only been approved as a drug in Switzerland and South Korea. Further studies need to be carried out in order to allow it to be sold as a prescription drug on the German market.
Source: Helmholtz Zentrum Muenchen - German Research Centre for Environmental Health
Citation: Dumitru A.F. et al (2011) Petasol butenoate complex (Ze 339) relieves allergic rhinitis–induced nasal obstruction more effectively than desloratadine, Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology; advance online publication
Electron micrograph of birch pollen.
Antihistamine medications were hitherto considered the treatment of choice to alleviate the symptoms of hay fever sufferers. Now, in a randomized double-blind study, Dr. Adam Chaker and Prof. Dr. Carsten Schmidt-Weber demonstrated that the plant extract Ze 339 (Petasol butenoate complex) combats nasal mucosa swelling faster and more effectively.
Apparently, however, the extract not only works in acute cases – “Our data indicate that the extract also has a preventive effect, which must be investigated further,” said Dr. Schmidt-Weber, head of the Center of Allergy & Environment (ZAUM) in Munich. The results look promising for improving the quality of life of people with allergies.
So far the plant extract has only been approved as a drug in Switzerland and South Korea. Further studies need to be carried out in order to allow it to be sold as a prescription drug on the German market.
Source: Helmholtz Zentrum Muenchen - German Research Centre for Environmental Health
Citation: Dumitru A.F. et al (2011) Petasol butenoate complex (Ze 339) relieves allergic rhinitis–induced nasal obstruction more effectively than desloratadine, Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology; advance online publication
Many people experience symptoms of Hay fever (also called allergic rhinitis) on a regular basis. Hay fever is caused by allergens that the body reacts to by creating inflammation in the lining of the nasal cavity. This inflammation is part of the body’s defense against invaders. All of the symptoms of hay fever are the result of the body trying to kick out an ‘attack’ by the allergens.
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