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Practitioner's Corner
J Investig Allergol Clin Immunol 2019; Vol. 29(5): 378-398 © 2019 Esmon Publicidad
Interestingly, only 8 patients presented symptoms of apple
allergy. Immunological analysis of Mal d 1 and Bet v 1 showed
that diversity of allergenicity was determined mainly by the
difference in allergen expression levels [8]. Bet v 1 homologs
of loquat and Mal d 1 were also considered to have different
expression levels. Further investigation of the differences
between the properties of the Bet v 1 homolog of loquat and
Mal d 1 is needed.
The limitations of this study included its small sample
size, especially with respect to patients who experienced
anaphylaxis. It is necessary to investigate more cases of
anaphylaxis to loquat in order to determine the exact protein
identities of possible allergens.
Our results indicated that the main allergen causing loquat
allergy was a Bet v 1 homolog with a sequence similar to that
of Mal d 1, but with a different immunoblot pattern. These
findings may contribute to the development of improved
prognostic and therapeutic tools for loquat allergy and loquat-
related anaphylaxis.
Acknowledgments
We are grateful for the support received from the following:
Dr. Takashi Arita of Ehime Seikyo Hospital, Department of
Pediatrics and Allergies; Dr. Nobue Takamatsu of Beppu
University, Faculty of Food Science and Nutrition; Dr. Makoto
Kameda of Osaka Habikino Medical Center, Department
of Pediatrics; and Dr. Satoshi Takada of Aichi Medical
University Hospital, Department of Pediatrics for the control
blood serum. We are also grateful to Miyuki Teshigawara, a
research assistant at Fujita Health University, for assistance
with experimental analyses.
Funding
Yasuto Kondo received funding from the Consumer
Agency.
Conflicts of Interest
Kayoko Matsunaga belongs to an endowed department
sponsored by Hoyu Co., Ltd. The remaining authors declare
that they have no conflicts of interest.
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Manuscript received March 7, 2019; accepted for publication
April 23, 2019.
Yasuto Kondo
Department of Pediatrics, Fujita Health University
Bantane Hospital
3-6-10 Otobasi, Nakagawa, Nagoya, Aichi, 454-8509
Japan
E-mail:
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