[Molecular aspects and diagnostic value of fungal allergens].
Cloning, sequencing and production of highly pure recombinant allergens allows to produce perfectly standardised allergen preparations. The development of a new cloning system based on filamentous phage allowed the fast isolation and characterisation of allergens from the fungus Aspergillus fumigatus. The produced recombinant allergens were tested in serological and clinical studies as well as for their performance for routine assessments in the ImmunoCAP-system. Thereby, a perfect correlation between skin test results and serology was found showing the potential of recombinant allergens for the diagnosis of allergic diseases. Moreover, the characterisation of fungal allergens substantially contributes to our understanding of the molecular nature of proteins involved in the elicitation of allergic reactions. Apart from allergenic proteins with unknown biological function, fungal allergens can be subdivided into two classes: 1. Species-specific, secreted proteins and 2. cytoplasmic, even in phylogenetically distant organisms, well conserved proteins. These fungal allergens show extended sequence similarity, a high level of IgE cross-reactivity and in some cases also cross-reactivity with homologous human proteins indicating autoimmune reactions involved in fungal allergy.
Crameri
R
R
Schweizerisches Institut für Allergie- und Asthmaforschung (SIAF), Davos, Schweiz. crameri@siaf.unizh.ch
Hemmann
S
S
Mayer
C
C
Appenzeller
U
U
Blaser
K
K
D000485:Allergens / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D001232:Aspergillus fumigatus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology*; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D005656:Fungal Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology
D000485:Allergens; D005656:Fungal Proteins; D011994:Recombinant Proteins