title: The impact of pollen-related food allergens on pollen allergy.
abstract: Patients with birch pollen allergy frequently develop hypersensitivity reactions to certain foods, e.g. apples, celery, carrots and hazelnuts. These reactions are mainly caused by IgE-antibodies specific for the major birch pollen allergen, Bet v 1, which cross-react with homologous proteins in these foods. Analyzing the T-cell response to Bet v 1-related food allergens revealed that these dietary proteins contain several distinct T-cell epitopes and activate Bet v 1-specific T cells to proliferate and produce cytokines. Several of these cross-reactive T-cell epitopes were not destroyed by simulated gastrointestinal digestion of food allergens and stimulated Bet v 1-specific T cells despite nonreactivity with IgE antibodies. Similarly, cooked food allergens did not elicit IgE-mediated symptoms (oral allergy syndromes) but caused T-cell-mediated late-phase reactions (deterioration of atopic eczema) in birch pollen-allergic patients with atopic dermatitis because thermal processing affected their conformational structure and not the primary amino acid sequence. Thus, T-cell cross-reactivity between Bet v 1 and related food allergens occurs independently of IgE-cross-reactivity in vitro and in vivo. We speculate that symptom-free consumption of pollen-related food allergens may have implications for the pollen-specific immune response of allergic individuals.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathophysiology, Center for Physiology and Pathophysiology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bohle
mesh_terms: D000485:Allergens / Q000276:immunology*; D003429:Cross Reactions; D004063:Digestion / Q000502:physiology; D005512:Food Hypersensitivity / Q000276:immunology* / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000276:immunology; D008954:Models, Biological; D006255:Rhinitis, Allergic, Seasonal / Q000276:immunology*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000485:Allergens; D007073:Immunoglobulin E