LATEX ALLERGY - FREQUENT OCCURRENCE OF IGE ANTIBODIES TO A CLUSTER OF11 LATEX PROTEINS IN PATIENTS WITH SPINA-BIFIDA AND HISTORIES OF ANAPHYLAXIS

Proteins and allergens in natural rubber latex were characterized by a two-dimensional immunoblot method with serum samples from 17 patients with latex allergy of whom 10 had spina bifida and 7 were health care workers. We demonstrated in rubber tree sap approximately 240 polypep tides of which 57 bound immunoglobulin E (IgE) in patient serum sample s. Forty-six of the 57 allergens were identified by patients with spin a bifida, 19 of 57 allergens by health care workers, and 8 of 57 aller gens by both patient groups. IgE antibodies from all 5 patients with s pina bifida with histories of anaphylaxis bound three allergens with m olecular weights of 27 kd and isoelectric points ranging from pH 4.6 t o pH 4.8. Four of these 5 patients also identified a complex of eight other allergens with molecular weights ranging from 13 kd to 27 kd and isoelectric points from pH 4.4 to pH 5.6. This cluster of II allergen s was identified by none of the 7 health care workers and by only I of 5 patients with spina bifida without demonstrable anaphylaxis. These preliminary findings indicate that patients with spina bifida in whom latex hypersensitivity has developed exhibit a strong anti-latex IgE i mmune response, which seems to differ markedly from the immune respons e of health care workers with latex allergy. The characteristic anti-l atex IgE profile in patients with spina bifida and with a history of a n anaphylactic reaction may be valuable in the evaluation of pathogene tic processes in latex allergy.