Vaccination with genetically engineered allergens prevents progression of allergic disease
- V. Niederberger*,
- F. Horak*,
- S. Vrtala†,
- S. Spitzauer‡,
- M.-T. Krauth§,
- P. Valent§,
- J. Reisinger*,
- M. Pelzmann*,
- B. Hayek†,¶,
- M. Kronqvist∥,
- G. Gafvelin∥,
- H. Grönlund∥,
- A. Purohit**,
- R. Suck††,
- H. Fiebig††,
- O. Cromwell††,
- G. Pauli**,
- M. van Hage-Hamsten∥, and
- R. Valenta†,‡‡
- Departments of *Otorhinolaryngology, †Pathophysiology, ‡Medical and Chemical Laboratory Diagnostics, and §Hematology and Hemostaseology, Vienna General Hospital, University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria; ∥Department of Medicine, Clinical Immunology and Allergy Unit, Karolinska University Hospital, SE-171 77 Stockholm, Sweden; **Service de Pneumologie, Hôpitaux Universitaires de Strasbourg, 67000 Strasbourg, France; and ††Allergopharma Joachim-Ganzer KG, 21465 Reinbek, Germany
Abstract
IgE-mediated allergy affects >25% of the population in industrialized countries. Repeated contact with the disease-eliciting allergens induces rises of allergen-specific IgE Abs and progression of the disease to more severe manifestations. Our study uses a type of vaccine that is based on genetically modified allergen derivatives to treat allergic patients. We developed hypoallergenic derivatives of the major birch pollen allergen, Bet v 1, by genetic engineering and vaccinated birch pollen-allergic patients (n = 124) in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Active treatment induced protective IgG Abs that inhibited allergen-induced release of inflammatory mediators. We also observed a reduction of cutaneous sensitivity as well as an improvement of symptoms in actively treated patients. Most important, rises of allergen-specific IgE induced by seasonal birch pollen exposure were significantly reduced in vaccinated patients. Vaccination with genetically engineered allergen derivatives is a therapy for allergy that not only ameliorates allergic reactions but also reduces the IgE production underlying the disease.
Footnotes
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↵ ‡‡ To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: rudolf.valenta{at}meduniwien.ac.at.
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↵ ¶ Present address: Department of Dermatology, Vienna General Hospital, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria.
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This paper results from the Arthur M. Sackler Colloquium of the National Academy of Sciences, “Therapeutic Vaccines: Realities of Today and Hopes for Tomorrow,” held April 1–3, 2004, at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, DC.
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Abbreviation: rBet v 1, recombinant Bet v 1.
- Copyright © 2004, The National Academy of Sciences
