Assessment of individual milk allergens

Monday, 18 October 2010 08:50

Only limited information regarding the allergenic activity of individual cow's milk allergens is available. A group of researchers lead by scientists in Austria have assessed cow's milk allergens for frequency of IgE recognition and allergenic activity.

The assessments were conducted on sera from 78 cow's milk-sensitized individuals of varying ages using a microarray and RBL assays. Both techniques provided useful diagnostic information. In particular, results from the RBL assays enabled the researchers to distinguish between individuals without or with mild clinical reactions and those with severe systemic or gastrointestinal symptoms. They could also establish those who grew out cow's milk allergy from those who did not.

Reference: Hochwallner et al. 2010. Clinical & Experimental Allergy Doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2222.2010.03602.x