title: Immunotherapeutic targeting of allergic disease.
abstract: The last decades have shown an increasing incidence of allergic illnesses such as rhinoconjunctivitis, with a prevalence of 20-30% in some industrialised parts of the world. The only treatment that may change the natural course of allergic disease is allergen-specific immunotherapy (SIT), which has been shown to prevent the development of asthma in rhinitic patients and anaphylaxis in insect venom allergic patients. However, the risk-benefit ratio for subcutaneous immunotherapy has changed little from when it was first developed in 1911. Novel developments of adjuvants, and allergens as well as methods of administration, now offer improvements in both the efficacy and safety of SIT. This review describes and discusses these new developments in the context of the many recent advances in our understanding of the mechanisms by which immunotherapy appears to act.
authors.affiliation: Unit for Experimental Immunotherapy, Department of Dermatology, University Hospital of Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Gabriela
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Senti
authors.forename: Julia M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Martínez Gómez
authors.forename: Lorna
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rettig
authors.forename: Brunello
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wüthrich
authors.forename: Thomas M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Kündig
authors.forename: Pål
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Johansen
mesh_terms: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000286:Administration, Sublingual; D000485:Allergens / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000818:Animals; D000906:Antibodies / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000276:immunology*; D007167:Immunotherapy; D007279:Injections, Subcutaneous; D051193:Toll-Like Receptors / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D000485:Allergens; D000906:Antibodies; D051193:Toll-Like Receptors