Significance of 40-, 45-, and 48-kDa Proteins in the Moderate-to-Severe Clinical Symptoms of Buckwheat Allergy

PURPOSE This study was aimed to investigate the relationship between the allergen components and moderate-to-severe allergic reactions in patients with buckwheat allergy. METHODS Fifteen patients with a history of buckwheat ingestion and a buckwheat specific IgE level≥0.35 kU/L were enrolled. They were divided into 2 groups according to clinical severity scores, with 0-1 being asymptomatic-to-mild and 2-4 being moderate-to-severe symptoms. Immunoblotting was performed to investigate IgE reactivity toward buckwheat allergens and to measure intensity of each component by using a reflective densitometer. RESULTS The proportions of positive band to the 16 kDa (62.5% vs 0%, P=0.026) and 40-50 kDa (87.5% vs 28.6%, P=0.041) buckwheat allergens in the grade 2-4 group were higher than those in grade 0-1 group. The level of buckwheat specific IgE of grade 2-4 group was higher than that of grade 0-1 group (41.3 kU/L vs 5.5 kU/L, P=0.037). The median optical densities (ODs) of IgE antibody binding to 40-50 kDa protein were higher in the grade 2-4 group, compared with those in the grade 0-1 group (130% OD vs 60.8% OD, P=0.037). CONCLUSIONS The 40-50 kDa protein is implicated as an important allergen to predict moderate-to-severe clinical symptoms in Korean children with buckwheat allergy.