Hope seen for peanut allergy cure

SYDNEY - Australian researchers have reported a major breakthrough in the relief of deadly peanut allergies with the discovery of a long-lasting treatment they say offers hope that a cure will be found as soon as possible.

In clinical trials conducted by scientists at Melbourne's Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, children with peanut allergies were given a probiotic along with small doses of a peanut protein over an 18-month period.

When the experiment ended in 2013, about 80 percent of the children were able to tolerate peanuts.