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. 2011 May;4(5):77-84.
doi: 10.1097/WOX.0b013e3182167e04.

New Allergens of Relevance in Tropical Regions: The Impact of Ascaris lumbricoides Infections

Luis Caraballo  1 , Nathalie Acevedo
Affiliations

New Allergens of Relevance in Tropical Regions: The Impact of Ascaris lumbricoides Infections

Luis Caraballo et al. World Allergy Organ J. 2011 May.

Abstract

One of the many aspects of the relationships between parasite infections and allergic diseases is the possibility that allergens from parasites enhance the TH2 responses, especially IgE production, in allergic diseases such as asthma. In this review we discuss about the allergenic composition of the nematode Ascaris lumbricoides and their potential impact on allergy sensitization and asthma pathogenesis and prevalence in populations living in the tropics and naturally exposed to both, mite allergens and helminth infections.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Among the 12 allergenic components detected with 1D immunoblottings under nonreducing conditions, 7 are cross-reactive, including the 40 and 23 kDa components (Tropomyosin and Glutathione-s-transferase) and 5 are Ascaris-specific. The nematode specific ABA-1 was identified by mass spectrometry in several bands from 10 to 15 kDa.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Ascaris in solid phase, pool of 7 sera from allergic asthmatic patients (reference 60), dilution 1:20. B. tropicalis and D. pteronyssinus extracts inhibited 83.3 and 79% of IgE binding to Ascaris. Other assay (not shown) detected that Ascaris extract inhibited 58.3 and 79.3% of IgE binding to B. tropicalis and D. pteronyssinus.
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