This review highlights some of the research advances in allergic
skin disease,
anaphylaxis, and
hypersensitivity reactions to foods, drugs, and insects that were reported primarily in the Journal in 2004. Clinical observations included that gastrointestinal symptoms during
anaphylaxis are associated with an increased risk for
hypotension; recurrence of
peanut allergy can occur for about 8% of children who pass an oral food challenge and is associated with continued avoidance of the food after the challenge; seafood
allergy is reported by 2.3% of the US population; and determination of the time to resolution of childhood egg and
milk allergy might be predictable by means of serial determination of food-specific
IgE levels. The comorbid effects of
atopic dermatitis (AD) on
asthma and the role of topical
calcineurin inhibitors in the
therapy of AD were also addressed. Basic and translational research observations indicate that improved diagnosis and
therapy might become possible on the basis of reported identification or characterization of
allergens such as:
lipid transfer
proteins and birch pollen-related cross-reactive
allergens in plant foods;
proteins in
scorpion venom that cross-react with
proteins from imported fire ant; mosquito saliva
proteins responsible for systemic
anaphylaxis; and
IgE binding to
quinolones detectable with an in vitro immunoassay. In addition, advances in understanding immune regulation associated with abrogation of oral tolerance in
food allergy and of dendritic cell function, modulation of regulatory T cells, and
chemokine expression in AD have elucidated possible targets for future intervention.