A recent research carried out by the US researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Centre has claimed that protein could be helpful in treating flu patients.

The researchers said that the granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) was found to be beneficial for the treatment of flu in the laboratory test. The protein is known to increase the activity of alveolar macrophages (AM), which is the first defense against inhaled organisms and molecules.

The researchers infected some mice with a lethal dose of a flu virus in a lab. Half of them were given GM-CSF and others were not.

The findings of the examination claimed that the mice which were not given any treatment lost weight and died within days while those treated survived. The results also found that the mice treated with GM-CSF also lost some weight initially but they soon regained it.

The tests on mice show that inhaling a protein which increases immune system activity could help in fighting against flu in humans also. The researchers suggest that aerosol taken nasally by human flu patients could be highly beneficial for them. Experts believe that further investigations are required to develop a potential treatment.