Preventive Administration of Non-Allergenic Bet v 1 Peptides Reduces Allergic Sensitization to Major Birch Pollen Allergen, Bet v 1

Preventive Administration of Non-Allergenic Bet v 1 Peptides Reduces Allergic Sensitization to Major Birch Pollen Allergen, Bet v 1

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IgE-mediated allergy to birch pollen affects more than 100 million patients world-wide.Bet v 1, a 17 kDa protein is the major allergen in birch pollen responsible for allergic rhinoconjunctivitis and asthma in birch pollen allergic patients.Allergen-specific immunotherapy (AIT) based on therapeutic administration of Bet v 1-containing vaccines is an effective treatment for birch pollen Gas Cooktops allergy but no allergen-specific forms of prevention are available.We developed a mouse model for IgE sensitization to Bet v 1 based on subcutaneous injection of aluminum-hydroxide adsorbed recombinant Bet v 1 and performed a detailed characterization of the specificities of the IgE, IgG and CD4+ T cell responses in sensitized mice using seven synthetic peptides of 31-42 amino acids length which comprised the Bet v 1 sequence and the epitopes recognized by human CD4+ T cells.We then demonstrate that preventive systemic administration of a mix of synthetic non-allergenic Bet v 1 peptides to 3-4 week old mice significantly reduced allergic immune responses, including IgE, IgG, IgE-mediated basophil activation, CD4+ T cell and IL-4 responses to the complete Bet v 1 allergen but not to the unrelated major Vitamin B grass pollen allergen Phl p 5, without inducing Bet v 1-specific allergic sensitization or adaptive immunity.

Our results thus demonstrate that early preventive administration of non-allergenic synthetic T cell epitope-containing allergen peptides could be a safe strategy for the prevention of allergen-specific IgE sensitization.