title: Pollen and plant food profilin allergens show equivalent IgE reactivity.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Profilins are commonly involved in polysensitization of allergic patients; therefore, appropriate markers should be used in component-resolved diagnosis.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the immunological equivalence between profilins from pollens and plant-derived foods, to be used in component-resolved diagnosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Specific immunoglobulin (Ig) G antibodies against pollen and fruit profilins, as well as sera from patients allergic to mustard, melon, or olive pollen, were used. Purified profilins from mustard seeds, fruit melon, and chenopod and birch pollen were assayed in immunoblotting, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and ELISA inhibition assays.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Significant correlation was found in the response of purified profilins by ELISA and immunoblotting for both specific IgG and IgE. The highest levels of IgE binding were obtained for olive pollen-allergic patients, which could be related to the route of sensitization. The responses of individual patients to profilins were also similar and independent of the sensitizing source. The inhibition between pairs of allergens was generally higher than 70%, indicating that profilins share most of the IgE epitopes. Modeling of mimotopes in the conformational structure of the implicated profilins supports their strong cross-reactivity obtained experimentally.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  No correlation exists between the level of IgE response of individual patients to specific profilins and the corresponding theoretical sensitizing source, suggesting that the sensitization could be attributable to any profilin present in the environment of the patients. This would bear out the use of most profilins as a common marker for polysensitization in component-resolved diagnosis and for therapeutic approaches.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular, Facultad de Química, Universidad Complutense, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Sofía
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sirvent
authors.forename: Leticia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tordesillas
authors.forename: Mayte
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Villalba
authors.forename: Araceli
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Díaz-Perales
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cuesta-Herranz
authors.forename: Gabriel
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Salcedo
authors.forename: Rosalía
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rodríguez
mesh_terms: D000485:Allergens / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000937:Antigen-Antibody Reactions / Q000276:immunology*; D052179:Antigens, Plant / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D001667:Binding, Competitive / Q000276:immunology; D027462:Chenopodium / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology; D003429:Cross Reactions / Q000276:immunology; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D018985:Epitopes, B-Lymphocyte / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000276:immunology; D007106:Immune Sera / Q000276:immunology; D015151:Immunoblotting; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000276:immunology*; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009149:Mustard Plant / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology; D010945:Plants, Edible / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*; D011058:Pollen / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*; D051304:Profilins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D011817:Rabbits; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
chemical_list: D000485:Allergens; D052179:Antigens, Plant; C530739:BETV2 protein, Betula pendula; C507132:Cuc m 2 allergen, Cucumis melo; D018985:Epitopes, B-Lymphocyte; D007106:Immune Sera; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D051304:Profilins; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D007073:Immunoglobulin E