Washington: Researchers have discovered a critical set of genes possibly involved in triggering asthma, thus opening the possibility of developing new anti-asthma drugs.

Their study, published in the current issue of Journal of Clinical Investigation, has also revealed what the scientists believe is a key role for the enzyme arginase in causing asthmatic symptoms.

Marc E Rothenberg, of Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Centre, who led the study, and his colleagues used mouse models of asthma along with "gene chip" technology to probe the underpinnings of asthma. "We've identified nearly 300 mouse genes, which we call asthma signature genes, that appear to be involved in asthma pathogenesis," notes Dr. Rothenberg.

"This gives us an unprecedented insight into the orchestration of the large number of genes that give rise to asthma." The findings also appear to apply in humans as well, says Dr. Rothenberg.

The researchers further say that this finding is an important step towards understanding the pathogenesis of asthma, and it provides new leads to interventions that could reduce the burden of this debilitating and sometimes deadly disease."

ANI