Classic specific immunotherapy and new perspectives in specific immunotherapy for food allergy

Food allergy is a major cause of life-threatening hypersensitivity reaction s. Food-induced anaphylaxis is the most common reason for someone to presen t to the emergency department for an anaphylactic reaction. The avoidance o f the allergenic food is the only method of preventing further reactions th at is currently available for sensitized patients. Strict avoidance of spec ific foods is the accepted treatment of food-induced allergic reactions but is often an unrealistic therapeutic option for food-induced hypersensitivi ty reactions for the many reasons previously described. Desirable therapeut ic strategies for the treatment and prevention of food allergies must be sa fe, relatively inexpensive and easily administered. Recent advances in the understanding of the immunological mechanisms underlying allergic disease a nd better characterization of food allergens have greatly expanded the pote ntial therapeutic options for future use. Several different forms of immuno modulatory therapies are currently under investigation: peptide immunothera py, mutated protein immunotherapy, allergen DNA immunization, vaccination w ith immunostimulatory DNA sequences and anti-immunoglobulin E (Anti-IgE) th erapy.