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The Frisco Physician Growing Hypo-Allergenic Peanuts

Ayass Bioscience made headlines during COVID with an advanced lab and has now turned its molecular medicine expertise to preventing allergic reactions to peanuts.

Dr. Mohamad Ayass is on a mission to prevent allergic reactions to peanuts. His Frisco molecular medicine and life science company, Ayass Bioscience, developed a product that can produce hypoallergenic peanuts and be used to clean surfaces to neutralize the allergic properties of the common legume.

Ayass is a physician who specializes in pulmonary and critical care medicine. He has private practices in West Texas and Frisco. He later expanded by founding a lab and life science company in a 30,000-square-foot facility in Frisco, employing nearly 150 people.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the lab was capable of producing results for 10,000 patients per day and was one of the first labs to turn results around in less than 24 hours. It made headlines when it was the first lab in the region to detect the deadly Omicron variant in North Texas in December 2021.

With a focus on immunology and data analysis, the company recently turned its expertise to fighting peanut allergies. Scientists created an aptamer (a molecule that binds to other proteins or molecules and can often prevent reactions) that interrupts the chemical process that causes an allergic reaction to peanuts.

The development could be necessary for a growing consumer population. Research found that between 1997 and 2009, the rate of peanut allergies tripled, and a 2017 study found the allergy’s prevalence increased 21 percent between 2010 and 2017. It is estimated that nearly 2.5 percent of U.S. children have a peanut allergy. Snacks with peanuts are usually prohibited from being served in schools, most airlines avoid serving them, and food processing facilities must provide warnings on their labels if they are also processed in the factory. Those with peanut allergies often have the allergy for life and can suffer severe reactions or fatal anaphylaxis.

Ayass’ aptamer is not a treatment meant to be consumed as medicine, but research published this year in the academic journal Allergies found the product neutralized the immune system response to peanuts. Ayass says the product can be used to clean surfaces and prevent peanut residue from causing an allergic reaction. It can also be added to peanut products to eliminate an allergic response.

Additionally, the company seeded peanut plants and watered them with a solution that contains the aptamer. After the peanut harvest, they detected the aptamer in the plant’s fruit, effectively creating a brand-new, allergy-free peanut. “It’s going to be a revolution for the farming industry, creating a new line of fruit,” Ayass says.

The life science company has published breakthroughs in multiple sclerosis, cancer, and blood clotting disorders. Ayass says he is inspired by the issues faced by his patients, and solutions result from the company’s investment in bioinformatics to analyze patient data and its use of software to find solutions quickly. “We can produce data at unprecedented rates,” says Dr. Lina Abi Mosleh, vice president and principal scientist at Ayass. The bottleneck is what to do with what you produce.”

To support peanut allergy development, Ayass formed a new company called Fistoq, which is a form of the word “peanut” in Arabic. The company’s products aim to change the way food processors operate and facilities are decontaminated. The company sells wipes, sprays, and concentrates to food processors and direct to consumers to eliminate the allergic properties of peanut products.

Historically, the only way to avoid an allergic reaction to peanuts is to avoid the product at all costs. Through the decontaminants and new hypoallergenic peanuts, Ayass hopes to provide a new solution. “Our goal is that no one should die from peanut allergies,” he says.

Will Maddox – senior writer for D CEO magazine and the editor of D CEO Healthcare.

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