SIT Recommended as First Line Therapy for Allergies

Toll-like Receptor Ligands Act as Adjuvants in Allergen-Specific Immunotherapy
Lab Law Weekly, 2/10/2006

"Allergen-specific immunotherapy (SIT) leads to long-term amelioration of T-helper type 2 (Th2)-mediated allergic symptoms and is therefore recommended as a first line therapy for allergies. The major disadvantage of SIT is its low efficiency, requiring treatment over years. In this study, we evaluated the potential of Toll-like receptor (TLR) ligands to facilitate Th1-type immune responses," researchers in Switzerland and the United States report.

"The immunogenicity and therapeutic potential of the major bee venom allergen phospholipase A2 (PLA2) combined with various TLR ligands were tested in mice and compared with immune responses induced by conventional aluminum-based preparations," said P. Johansen and collaborators at University Hospital in Zurich in Switzerland and MannKind Corporation in the U.S. . .

Johansen and associates published their study in Clinical and Experimental Allergy (Toll-like receptor ligands as adjuvants in allergen-specific immunotherapy. Clin Exp Allergy, 2005;35(12):1591-1598).

For additional information, contact P. Johansen, Unit for Experimental Immunotherapy, University Hospital, Gloriastrasse 31, CH-8091 Zurich, Switzerland. E-mail: pal.johansen@usz.ch