A NEW method for treating respiratory tract infections has been discovered by Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Shenzhen Special Zone Daily reported.

Secondary bacterial infections, which damage lung tissue and lead to lung inflammation or edema, are one of the significant reasons for the high mortality rate of the flu.

At present, antibiotics are still the most popular way to treat bacterial infections. However, the abuse of antibiotics not only causes side effects in the liver and kidneys but also produces antibiotic-resistant bacteria, according to Li Liang, a key researcher of the method.

By conducting a great deal of research, Li’s team has found the main destroyer of lung tissue — a host protein called ANGPTL4, which can open cells to let liquid flow into alveolar space and induce asphyxia.

Li added that the amount of this protein in patients with pulmonary infections can reach as high as 10 times the norm.

By targeting this protein, the team has designed an antibody therapy. An experiment on mice indicated that the new therapy was able to increase the survival rate of bacterial pulmonary infections by 80 percent.

At the same time, it can reduce pulmonary edema, protect lung tissue and activate immune cells.

Fan Yunping, a professor with the Seventh Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, spoke highly of the research’s role in providing a new treatment method for infectious diseases, especially drug-resistant bacterial infections.

The research results were published on mBio, a journal that reviews and publishes researches in microbiology and allied fields, at the beginning of this month, the report said.

Li said that relevant medicines, which can be administered both orally and by injection, are expected to be tested and developed over the next three years.

(Wang Jingli)