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Mortz CG, Eller E, Garvik OS, Kjaer HF, Zuberbier T, Bindslev-Jensen C. Challenge-verified thresholds for allergens mandatory for labeling: How little is too much for the most sensitive patient? Allergy 2024; 79:1306-1316. [PMID: 37661296 DOI: 10.1111/all.15870] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2023] [Revised: 07/18/2023] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 09/05/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND It is mandatory to label food products with the 14 main allergens in the EU. Reasonable allergen labeling requires knowledge of population-based thresholds derived from food challenges. The aim of this study was to evaluate the threshold-distribution in clinically verified food allergic patients for allergens mandatory for labeling. METHODS All positive open oral food challenges and double-blind placebo-controlled food challenges (DBPCFC) performed at the Allergy Center, Odense University Hospital, Denmark (2000-2022) were included. For each included challenge, the cumulative threshold (LOAEL) was obtained and NOAEL estimated. Data were modelled as an interval censored log-normal distribution. RESULTS Overall, 38 of all 2612 challenges (1.5%) in 1229 patients (717 male, 986 children) reacted to <5 mg protein. The majority of the most sensitive patients reacted with a Sampson severity score of 2-3. Using interval censored log-normal models only five groups (hens´ egg, fish, peanut, milk, tree-nuts) elicited reactions after ingestion of 0.5 mg protein and in low frequencies of the population. Hen's egg was the most potent allergen, with reactivity to <0.5 mg protein in 0.24% [0.13-0.44%] of egg allergic patients while the estimated fraction of allergic patients reacting to a eliciting dose on 0.5 mg protein for most other allergens were below 0.04%. CONCLUSION Our data demonstrates that the majority of food allergic patients as expected tolerating traces of allergenic foods without developing severe allergic symptoms and signs. Hen's egg appears to be the food most likely to elicit reactions in the most sensitive individuals at very low doses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte G Mortz
- Department of Dermatology and Allergy Centre, Odense Research Centre for Anaphylaxis (ORCA), Odense University Hospital, University of Southern Denmark, Odense C, Denmark
| | - Esben Eller
- Department of Dermatology and Allergy Centre, Odense Research Centre for Anaphylaxis (ORCA), Odense University Hospital, University of Southern Denmark, Odense C, Denmark
| | - Olav Sivertsen Garvik
- Center for Clinical Epidemiology, Odense University Hospital, and Research Unit of Clinical Epidemiology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | - Henrik Fomsgaard Kjaer
- Department of Dermatology and Allergy Centre, Odense Research Centre for Anaphylaxis (ORCA), Odense University Hospital, University of Southern Denmark, Odense C, Denmark
| | - Torsten Zuberbier
- Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Institute of Allergology and Fraunhofer Institute for Translational Medicine and Pharmacology ITMP Allergology and Immunology Paul-Ehrlich-Haus Hindenburgdamm 27, Berlin, Germany
| | - Carsten Bindslev-Jensen
- Department of Dermatology and Allergy Centre, Odense Research Centre for Anaphylaxis (ORCA), Odense University Hospital, University of Southern Denmark, Odense C, Denmark
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2
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Rodríguez Del Río P, Álvaro-Lozano M, Arasi S, Bazire R, Escudero C, Patel N, Sandoval-Ruballos M, Vazquez-Ortiz M, Nowak-Wegrzyn A, Blümchen K, Dunn Galvin A, Deschildre A, Greenhawt M, Schnadt S, Riggioni C, Remington BC, Turner P, Fernandez Rivas M. Evaluation of clinical outcomes of efficacy in food allergen immunotherapy trials, COFAITH EAACI task force. Allergy 2024; 79:793-822. [PMID: 38263695 DOI: 10.1111/all.16027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2023] [Revised: 12/14/2023] [Accepted: 01/04/2024] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
Food allergy is a global public health problem that until recent years lacked any aetiological treatment supported by academy, industry and regulators. Food immunotherapy (AIT) is an evolving treatment option, supported by clinical practice and industry trial data. Recent AIT meta-analyses have highlighted the difficulty in pooling safety and efficacy data from AIT trials, due to secondary heterogeneity in the study. An EAACI task force (CO-FAITH) initiated by the Paediatric Section was created to focus on AIT efficacy outcomes for milk, egg and peanut allergy rather than in trial results. A systematic search and a narrative review of AIT controlled clinical trials and large case series was conducted. A total of 63 manuscripts met inclusion criteria, corresponding to 23, 21 and 22 studies of milk, egg and peanut AIT, respectively. The most common AIT efficacy outcome was desensitization, mostly defined as tolerating a maintenance phase dose, or reaching a particular dose upon successful exit oral food challenge (OFC). However, a large degree of heterogeneity was identified regarding the dose quantity defining this outcome. Sustained unresponsiveness and patient-reported outcomes (e.g. quality of life) were explored less frequently, and to date have been most rigorously described for peanut AIT versus other allergens. Change in allergen threshold assessed by OFC remains the most common efficacy measure, but OFC methods suffer from heterogeneity and methodological disparity. This review has identified multiple heterogeneous outcomes related to measuring the efficacy of AIT. Efforts to better standardize and harmonize which outcomes, and how to measure them must be carried out to help in the clinical development of safe and efficacious food allergy treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pablo Rodríguez Del Río
- Allergy Department, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- FibHNJ, ARADyAL-RETICs RD16 /0006/0026 Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain
- IIS La Princesa, Madrid, Spain
| | - Montserrat Álvaro-Lozano
- Pediatric Allergy and Clinical Immunology Department, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu, Barcelona, Spain
- Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, Barcelona, Spain
- Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Stefania Arasi
- Translational Research in Paediatric Specialities Area, Division of Allergy, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Raphaëlle Bazire
- Allergy Department, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- FibHNJ, ARADyAL-RETICs RD16 /0006/0026 Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain
- IIS La Princesa, Madrid, Spain
| | - Carmelo Escudero
- Allergy Department, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- FibHNJ, ARADyAL-RETICs RD16 /0006/0026 Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain
- IIS La Princesa, Madrid, Spain
| | - Nandinee Patel
- National Heart & Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Monica Sandoval-Ruballos
- Pediatric Allergy and Clinical Immunology Department, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu, Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Anna Nowak-Wegrzyn
- Department of Pediatrics, Hassenfeld Children's Hospital, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York City, New York, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Collegium Medicum, University of Warmia and Mazury, Olsztyn, Poland
| | - Katharina Blümchen
- Division of Pneumology, Allergology and Cystic Fibrosis, Department of Paediatric and Adolescent Medicine, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany
| | | | - Antoine Deschildre
- Pediatric Pulmonology and Allergy Department, CHU Lille, Univ. Lille, Hôpital Jeanne de Flandre, Lille, France
| | - Matthew Greenhawt
- Section of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Colorado, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurura, Colorado, USA
| | - Sabine Schnadt
- German Allergy and Asthma Association (DAAB), Mönchengladbach, Germany
| | - Carmen Riggioni
- Department of Paediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore City, Singapore
- Khoo Teck Puat-National University Children's Medical Institute, National University Hospital, National University Health System, Singapore City, Singapore
| | - Benjamin C Remington
- Food Allergy Research and Resource Program, Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA
- Remington Consulting Group B.V, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Paul Turner
- National Heart & Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Montserrat Fernandez Rivas
- Allergy Department, Hospital Clínico San Carlos, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Complutense (UCM), IdISSC, ARADyAL, Madrid, Spain
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Bartha I, Almulhem N, Santos AF. Feast for thought: A comprehensive review of food allergy 2021-2023. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2024; 153:576-594. [PMID: 38101757 PMCID: PMC11096837 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaci.2023.11.918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2023] [Revised: 11/19/2023] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 12/17/2023]
Abstract
A review of the latest publications in food allergy over the past couple of years confirmed that food allergy is a major public health concern, affecting about 8% of children and 10% of adults in developed countries. The prevalence of food allergy varies around the world, with the increase being driven mainly by environmental factors, possibly together with genetic susceptibility to environmental changes. A precise diagnosis of food allergy is extremely important. Both new tests (eg, the basophil activation test) and improved optimization of information provided by existing tests (eg, the skin prick test and measurement of specific IgE level) can contribute to improving the accuracy and patients' comfort of food allergy diagnosis. Understanding the underlying immune mechanisms is fundamental to designing allergen-specific treatments that can be safe and effective in the long term. New discoveries of the immune response to food allergens, including T-cell and B-cell responses, have emerged. Novel therapeutic approaches are being trialed at various stages of development as attempts to allow for more active intervention to treat food allergy. Prevention is key to reducing the increase in prevalence. Early introduction of allergenic foods seems to be the most effective intervention, but others are being studied, and will, it is hoped, lead to modification of the epidemiologic trajectory of food allergy over time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irene Bartha
- Children's Allergy Service, Evelina London Children's Hospital, Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital, London, United Kingdom; Department of Women and Children's Health (Pediatric Allergy), School of Life Course Sciences, Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine, School of Immunology and Microbial Sciences King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Noorah Almulhem
- Children's Allergy Service, Evelina London Children's Hospital, Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital, London, United Kingdom; Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, King Fahad Hospital of the University, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia
| | - Alexandra F Santos
- Children's Allergy Service, Evelina London Children's Hospital, Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital, London, United Kingdom; Department of Women and Children's Health (Pediatric Allergy), School of Life Course Sciences, Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine, School of Immunology and Microbial Sciences King's College London, London, United Kingdom; Peter Gorer Department of Immunobiology, School of Immunology and Microbial Sciences King's College London, London, United Kingdom.
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4
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Nachshon L, Westerhout J, Blom WM, Remington B, Levy MB, Goldberg MR, Epstein-Rigbi N, Katz Y, Elizur A. Sesame eliciting and safe doses in a large sesame allergic population. Allergy 2023; 78:3212-3220. [PMID: 37606275 DOI: 10.1111/all.15863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2023] [Revised: 07/02/2023] [Accepted: 07/10/2023] [Indexed: 08/23/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Sesame is a significant food allergen causing severe and even fatal reactions. Given its increasing prevalence in western diet, sesame is listed as an allergenic food requiring labeling in the United States and EU. However, data on the population reaction doses to sesame are limited. METHODS All sesame oral food challenges (OFCs), performed either for diagnosis or for threshold identification before the beginning of sesame oral immunotherapy (OIT) between November 2011 and July 2021 in Shamir medical center were analyzed for reaction threshold distribution. Safe-dose challenges with 90-120 min intervals were also analyzed. RESULTS Two hundred and fifty patients underwent 338 positive OFCs, and additional 158 safe-dose OFCs were performed. The discrete and cumulative protein amounts estimated to elicit an objective reaction in 1% (ED01) of the entire cohort (n = 250) were 0.8 mg (range 0.3-6.3) and 0.7 mg (range 0.1-7.1), respectively, and those for 5% of the population (ED05) were 3.4 mg (range 1.2-20.6) and 4.5 mg (range 1.2-28.8), respectively. Safe-dose OFCs showed similar values of ED01 (0.8, 0.4-7.5 mg) and ED05 (3.4, 1.2-22.9 mg). While doses of ≤1 mg sesame protein elicited oral pruritus in 11.6% of the patients, no objective reaction was documented to this amount in any of the challenges, including safe-dose OFCs. CONCLUSIONS This study provides data on sesame reaction threshold distribution in the largest population of allergic patients studied, with no right or left censored data, and with validation using a safe-dose OFC. It further supports the current methods for ED determination as appropriate for establishing safety precautions for the food industry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liat Nachshon
- Institute of Allergy, Immunology and Pediatric Pulmonology, Yitzhak Shamir Medical Center, Be'er Ya'akov, Israel
- Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Joost Westerhout
- The Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research TNO, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - W Marty Blom
- The Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research TNO, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Benjamin Remington
- Food Allergy Research and Resource Program, Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA
| | - Michael B Levy
- Institute of Allergy, Immunology and Pediatric Pulmonology, Yitzhak Shamir Medical Center, Be'er Ya'akov, Israel
| | - Michael R Goldberg
- Institute of Allergy, Immunology and Pediatric Pulmonology, Yitzhak Shamir Medical Center, Be'er Ya'akov, Israel
- Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Naama Epstein-Rigbi
- Institute of Allergy, Immunology and Pediatric Pulmonology, Yitzhak Shamir Medical Center, Be'er Ya'akov, Israel
- Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Yitzhak Katz
- Institute of Allergy, Immunology and Pediatric Pulmonology, Yitzhak Shamir Medical Center, Be'er Ya'akov, Israel
- Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Arnon Elizur
- Institute of Allergy, Immunology and Pediatric Pulmonology, Yitzhak Shamir Medical Center, Be'er Ya'akov, Israel
- Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
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Bourgoin P, Busnel JM. Promises and Remaining Challenges for Further Integration of Basophil Activation Test in Allergy-Related Research and Clinical Practice. THE JOURNAL OF ALLERGY AND CLINICAL IMMUNOLOGY. IN PRACTICE 2023; 11:3000-3007. [PMID: 37634807 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaip.2023.08.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2023] [Revised: 08/21/2023] [Accepted: 08/21/2023] [Indexed: 08/29/2023]
Abstract
More than 20 years after having been initially proposed, the relevance and usefulness of basophil activation test (BAT) for the field of allergy research and testing were demonstrated on many occasions. Leveraging the fully open format of a flexible, whole blood-based functional assay, BAT has been shown to be equally important for fundamental research, clinical research, and diagnosis. Regardless of whether the focus of a study is on the characterization of the allergenic moiety, on the patient side, or on the study of the fundamental processes involved in the allergic disease or its treatment, BAT enables the gathering of very important insights. In spite of this, its full capabilities have yet to be leveraged. Various bottlenecks, including but not limited to assay logistics, robustness, flow cytometry access, and/or expertise, have indeed been limiting its development beyond experts and long-term users. Now, various initiatives, aiming at resolving these bottlenecks, have been launched. If successful, a broader use of BAT could then be contemplated. In such a situation, its more thorough integration in clinical practice has the potential to significantly change the allergic patient's journey.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pénélope Bourgoin
- Global Research Organization, Beckman Coulter Life Sciences, Marseille, France
| | - Jean-Marc Busnel
- Global Research Organization, Beckman Coulter Life Sciences, Marseille, France.
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Upton J, Anagnostou A, Nowak-Wegrzyn A. Oral food challenges: Measuring what counts. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2023; 152:50-52. [PMID: 37207800 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaci.2023.05.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2023] [Revised: 05/02/2023] [Accepted: 05/12/2023] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Julia Upton
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Immunology and Allergy, The Hospital for Sick Children, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario.
| | - Aikaterini Anagnostou
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Immunology, Allergy and Retrovirology, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Tex; Division of Allergy, Immunology & Retrovirology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Tex
| | - Anna Nowak-Wegrzyn
- Department of Pediatrics, Hassenfeld Children's Hospital, NYU R. Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY; Department of Pediatrics, Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Collegium Medicum, University of Warmia and Mazury, Olsztyn, Poland
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