Genetically engineered allergy vaccine may bring hope to hay fever sufferers

Main Category: Allergy
Article Date: 10 Aug 2004 - 14:00 PDT


A genetically engineered allergy vaccine has provided promising results in a trial which took place in Austria, Sweden and France. This vaccine, say scientists, provided hay fever sufferers with significant benefits.

You can read about this trial in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The team say they have also had excellent results with other genetically engineered vaccines for many types of allergies.

Experts say that at least 25% of us have some kind of allergy (worldwide).

An allergy is an overreaction by the person's immune system to a foreign body (this foreign body is harmless).

Most vaccines are aimed at increasing the body's immune system. An allergy vaccine has the opposite aim - it has to reduce the person's immune system.

Team leader, Rudolf Valenta, Medical University of Vienna, Austria, said "What we find in fact, is that when people are vaccinated, they have kind of a barrier of antibodies; and apparently these antibodies prevent the oil getting to the fire and heating up the allergic inflammation."

The team produced genetically engineered birch tree pollen so that the body can produce antibodies which greatly reduce the immune response (to pollen). The vaccine did not only reduce response to birch wood pollen, but to many other pollens as well.

The advantage of using genetic engineering is that there are no side effects for the patient (in this case).

The team hope to develop their research so that vaccines can be made for all types of allergies - to treat an existing allergy or prevent one from developing.

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