Identification and characterization of meat allergens for improved diagnosis of meat allergy

Background In Western European countries meat represents a mainstay of the diet. However, meat can also induce severe allergic reactions. About 0.5 to 8% of all food allergies are caused by various meat sources. Besides the observation that meat allergic patients are either sensitized to white meat (e.g., chicken, turkey) or to red meat (e.g., beef, pork, lamb), there is limited knowledge on allergic reactions caused by meat and only a few meat allergens have so far been identified. Diagnosis of meat allergy is currently still based on poorly standardized extracts with unsatisfactory sensitivity and specificity. With the final goal to develop tools for improved meat allergy diagnosis, we aimed to thoroughly characterize IgE reactive proteins of meat sources regarded as the most common causes of meat allergy in Central Europe, namely chicken, beef and pork.