I was very intrigued by our conversations surrounding enzyme inhibition, specifically penicillin, and enzyme defects, specifically favism, because they both reminded me of allergens. My whole life I have had to repeat my laundry list of allergens, the most important being penicillin, followed by ‘everything outside’ that activates my allergy induced asthma. When it comes to my asthma, I always just figure there was something wrong with my lungs. But, after our conversations in class regarding enzyme inhibition, deficiencies, and defects, I started to become curious about whether my asthma could be attributed to something regarding enzymes.
After some brief investigation, I discovered that the glucose metabolism pathway can influence the function of airway epithelial cells, which act as the primary defense against inhaled allergens, by affecting their cell signaling. Additionally, some key glycolytic enzymes that I recognized have important roles in asthma, including:
- Hexokinase 2 – controls (ASMC) adult smooth muscle cell production (increased ASMC can lead to decreased lung function)
- Lactate Dehydrogenase – facilitates glycolytic process by converting pyruvate to lactate (some studies have found an association between respiratory distress and an increased conversion of pyruvate to lactate)
Defects, deficiencies, or inhibition of these enzymes can lead to or attribute to asthma!
Some recent studies have used glycolysis inhibitors as effective potential therapeutic agents for asthma, like effectively reducing lactate production and inflammation, but result in systemic toxicity. So, until there’s further research into glycolytic enzymes that cause or improve asthma, I’ll just have to stick close to my inhalers.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5492954/
Research Progress on Glycolysis in the Pathogenesis of Asthma – PMC
This was really interesting to read! I had previously thought of allergen induced asthma to be exclusively the immune system reacting to an allergen. I didn’t know that enzymes involved in glucose metabolism, such as hexokinase and lactate dehydrogenase, would effect lung tissue in a way that would enable allergens to enter tissues. The current research seems very interesting, and I wonder how the benefits of glycolysis inhibition would weigh against the downsides of reduced ATP production.