Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine are preparing to conduct the first of three clinical trials on an herbal formula to determine whether it protects people with peanut, tree nut, fish, or shellfish allergy from anaphylaxis. The formula comprises an extract of nine herbs that have been used extensively in traditional Chinese medicine.

The New York state departments of health and education have produced standardized guidelines, for managing food allergies and anaphylaxis in public schools throughout the state, titled ‘Making the Difference: Caring for Students with Life-Threatening Allergies’.

A recently published opinion paper considers the lack of standardisation for the clinical and scientific assessment of proteins before they are labelled as allergens. The authors maintain that food allergens are being reported and recorded in allergen databases, with minimal or in some cases apparently no published justification; IgE binding, rather than clinically relevant reactivity, is inappropriately used to confirm allergenicity.

The program and registration brochure is now available for the 19th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA) which will be held at the Park Hyatt Hotel, Melbourne on Wednesday 12 - Friday 14 November 2008.