Cat allergen sampling by a new personal collector (Partrap FA 52)

Recent studies carried out by us and others have demonstrated that Fel d 1, the main cat allergen, may be passively transferred by human clothing in c at-free environments. Consequently, the monitoring of the Fel d 1 levels ei ther in indoor environments or on allergen-contaminated clothes of sensitiz ed cat owners should be considered an important tool in prevention strategi es. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a personal air sa mpler (Partrap FA 52) in capturing cat allergen from wool fabrics. Seven id entical wool webs (80 x 100 cm) were put in the baskets of seven male cats for I week. In our laboratory each web was divided into two parts (80 x 50 cm), the first of which was then divided in two parts (40 x 50 cm) and each was vacuumed directly by one collector. The second part was dry-cleaned at a professional cleaners, divided in two parts and then vacuumed. For the d ust collection from wool webs we used a fixed high volume air sampler (CF/2 0 Gelaire Flow Labs, Milan, Italy) and a personal collector (Partrap FA 52, Coppa Biella, Italy). Fel d I content was determined using a two site ELIS A (ALK-Abello Group, Madrid, Spain). Both air samplers collected cat allerg ens from cat-exposed wool fabrics before and after dry cleaning. There were significant differences between the levels of Fel d I before and after dry cleaning by using either CF/20 or Partrap FA52 and between the levels of F el d I before dry cleaning using CF/20 and Partrap FA 52. The results of ou r study suggest that Partrap FA 52, although ifs air flow is half that of t he CF/20, is able to collect even residual amounts of cat allergen from woo l webs after dry cleaning and consequently may constitute a simple and effe ctive means of monitoring the levels of Fel d 1 on the clothes of cat owner s.