Peanut allergy is one of the commonest food hypersensitivities causing fatal or near-fatal reactions. There is, currently, no preventive treatment and the incidence of severe allergic reactions during peanut desensitisation has limited its clinical use. Anti-immunoglobulin E therapy has been shown to be effective in preventing peanut-induced reactions but it does not result in long-term toleran...

Methods DBPCFC was performed with increasing concentrations of peanut allergen (1 mg to 5 g of peanut) in 42 children with suspected IgE-mediated peanut-allergy. Blood samples were taken for analyses of CD-sens and quantification of IgE-antibodies to peanut and Ara h 1-3, 8-9. Basophils were stimulated in vitro with peanut allergen in descending doses until the threshold sensitivity was reached...

BACKGROUND Peanut allergy is an important health problem in the United States, affecting approximately 0.6% of children. Inadvertent exposure to peanut is a risk factor for life-threatening food-induced anaphylaxis. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this investigation was to develop an immunoassay for a major peanut allergen, Ara h 1, to detect peanut allergen in foods so that the risk of inadvertent ...

Background Hazelnut-allergic children express variable clinical phenotypes. Tests for the diagnosis of hazelnut allergy are usually conducted on children presenting clinical symptoms following hazelnut ingestion, but also as screening tests after the discovery of a food allergy, mainly to tree nut or peanut. It is important to determine if molecular allergens could be markers of severity in haz...

BACKGROUND The gold standard for diagnosing food allergy is the double-blind, placebo-controlled food challenge. Diagnostic food-specific IgE levels might assist in diagnosing food allergies and circumventing the need for food challenges. OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to determine the utility of food-specific IgE measurements for identifying symptomatic peanut, tree nut, and seed a...

BACKGROUND Peanut allergy is a major public health problem that affects 1% of the population and has no effective therapy. OBJECTIVE To examine the safety and efficacy of oral desensitization in peanut-allergic children in combination with a brief course of anti-IgE mAb (omalizumab [Xolair]). METHODS We performed oral peanut desensitization in peanut-allergic children at high risk for devel...

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea) allergy is a major cause of food-induced anaphylaxis, with increasing prevalence worldwide. To date, there is no cure for peanut allergy, and, unlike many other food allergies, it usually persists through to adulthood. Prevention of exposure to peanuts is managed through strict avoidance, which can be compromised by the frequent use of peanuts and peanut products in fo...

BACKGROUND Peanut allergenicity has been reported to be influenced by heat treatment, yet the commonly available extracts for skin prick testing (SPT) are derived from raw extracts. OBJECTIVE To assess the effect of heat treatment on the SPT reactivity and specific IgE binding to peanut. METHODS Three commercial extracts and 3 laboratory-prepared extracts, including raw, roasted, and boiled...