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Division of Immunopathology
Department of Pathophysiology and Allergy Research
Center of Pathophysiology, Infectiology & Immunology

Medical University of Vienna

Vienna General Hospital, AKH, 3Q
Waehringer Guertel 18-20
A-1090 Vienna, Austria

Molecular, immunological and structural characterization of animal-derived allergens for component/epitope-based in vitro diagnosis and specific immunotherapy. [Spitzauer]

Project summary

During the first two project periods we characterized the most important allergens from cat, dog, fish and cow's milk and produced them in recombinant form. We established diagnostic allergen-microarrays based on recombinant allergens and peptides thereof that can be used for component resolved diagnosis of allergy down to the epitope-level. Furthermore, we generated and characterized candidate vaccines for the treatment of fish allergy and defined hypoallergenic but immunogenic fragments of the major cat allergen, Fel d 1.
In the coming project period we plan to engineer recombinant hypoallergenic Fel d 1-derived mosaic molecules for vaccination and tolerance induction based on the results obtained during the previous project period. We plan to characterize the mosaic molecules regarding their structural and immunological features, and to evaluate them in therapeutic and preventive murine models for cat allergy regarding their tolerogenic and vaccine-like activity and to test them regarding their allergenic activity in allergic patients. Using a similar approach we plan to design and characterize hypoallergenic derivatives of the major dog allergens as well.
We will continue the molecular characterization of animal-derived food allergens, in particular of cow's milk and hen's egg allergens. With the aim to contribute to the development of low/non-allergenic food, we are especially interested to define the portions of these food allergens which can still induce mast cell and basophil degranulation. In parallel we plan to investigate T cell responses to these food allergens and fragments thereof, in order to elucidate possible T cell-mediated mechanisms of allergic inflammation in food allergy. From the comparative analysis of humoral and cellular immune responses of healthy and allergic persons we hope to get insight into the basic differences between a healthy immune response, tolerance (i.e., non-reactivity) and an allergic immune response. These investigations should lead to the development of immunological intervention strategies against food allergies.