OLEACEAE POLLINOSIS - A REVIEW

In the Oleaceae family, the most allergenic pollen is produced by Olea europaea, the olive tree, which in the Mediterranean area has been re cognized as one of the most important cause of seasonal respiratory al lergy. The olive pollination season lasts from May to the end of June and sometimes causes severe symptoms (oculorhinitis and/or bronchial a sthma). Olive pollinosis is quite rare in the form of monosensitizatio n. Although adults are affected the most, olive sensitization can be r ecognized in children, too. However, it is not easy to be sure about t he clinical relevance of allergic sensitization to olive, even in pati ents with positivity to this pollen, as results from allergological te sts in vivo and/or in vitro, because positivity to Olea pollen is not equivalent to clinical responsibility, above all in patients without s easonal respiratory symptomatology. Studies on the allergenic content of O. europaea pollen are currently in progress. In Northern and Centr al Europe, where there are no olive trees, there are two commonly occu rring genera of the Oleaceae family, namely Fraxinus and Ligustrum, bu t these have a low frequency of allergic sensitization. A fourth anemo philous member of the Oleaceae, Phillyrea, has a more regional distrib ution in some parts of the Mediterranean. Other nonanemophilous and us ually not allergenic Oleaceae genera are Forsythia, Jasminum and Syrin ga.