WHY ARE SOME ALLERGENS ENZYMES

In the last ten years, progress in the field of allergy research has l ed to the purification of some of the major allergens and to a better knowledge of their physico-chemical properties. A number of studies ha ve shown that some allergens have enzymatic activities. Molecular biol ogy has provided the means to clone and sequence genes encoding these allergens and to produce recombinant allergens in yeast and bacteria. Epitope mapping of natural and synthetic allergens, using polyclonal o r monoclonal antibodies and cell-stimulation tests, has also contribut ed greatly to the understanding of their immunogenicity and allergenic ity. Analysis of these new data allow us to explain why some allergens are enzymes.