Identification of myosin light chain protein as a major fish allergen

Abstract

The prevalence of food allergy has been increasing worldwide in the last 10 years. Currently, 2%–8% of the population in Western countries suffers from some type of food allergy. In Spain, seafood allergy has increased approximately 30% in the last decade, affecting both children and adults, with 10% affected by fish allergy. In this study, we have performed an initial screening of the allergens involved in the sensitization of 21 fish allergic patients from the South of Europe, considering: medical record and positive Skin Prick Test (SPT) to one of these five fish extracts (homemade, online repository): cod, hake, tuna, sole and sea bream (Table 1). Western blot was used to recognize the sensitization of these patients and LC/MS was used to characterize the allergen recognized by western blot. For practical reasons, clinical symptoms were recorded and classified into four categories: oral allergy syndrome (OAS), gastrointestinal symptoms (GI), urticaria-angioedema (U/AE) and anaphylaxis (ANA). The study was approved by the Medical Ethical committee of ASISA Dr. Lobatón according to the Code of Ethics of the World Medical Association (Declaration of Helsinki). Written informed consent was obtained from each patient.