Modulation of Food Allergy Responses with a Nanoemulsion-Based Allergy Vaccine
Abstract
This proposal addresses the Fiscal Year 2014 Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program Food Allergy Topic Area. Food allergy is an emerging epidemic, with the incidence more than doubling in the last decade. The economic and social costs of food allergy are tremendous, costing $24.8 billion annually and preventing the participation in normal activities such as eating in a restaurant or school or joining the military. Most therapies for food allergies only control the symptoms after an allergic reaction occurs and do little to address the underlying aberrant immune responses that cause allergy. Conventional food allergy "oral immunotherapy" has been used in some cases to induce desensitization of individuals to food antigens. These protocols, however, involve frequent and prolonged oral intake of the offending food, have significant risk for adverse reactions, and usually do not induce long-term results. Hypersensitive responses to food allergies are characterized by an inappropriate Th2 response. In contrast, nanoemulsion-based vaccines have an inherent tendency to activate an appropriate Th17, Th1 immune response to a wide range of allergens. This proposal will test the hypothesis that immunizing against food proteins with this nanoemulsion vaccine will re-direct the immune system away from a hypersensitive Th2 allergic response and toward a moderate and non-life-threatening Th17, Th1 response. This hypothesis will be tested in mouse models of egg and peanut allergy. This idea is innovative because instead of simply treating the symptoms of an allergic response, this strategy uses our understanding of the mechanisms of immune responses in food allergies to direct the immune system to a more appropriate reaction to the offending foods. In addition, because nanoemulsion encapsulates the food proteins, this approach is also expected to alleviate the risk of exposing highly allergic patients to the allergen during the treatment process. If successful, the studies proposed here will demonstrate that nanoemulsion-based vaccines can be used to modulate severe food allergy responses and will greatly reduce the life-threatening risks that are currently associated with food allergies. Nanoemulsion adjuvants have already been shown to be effective at generating long-lasting immune responses against a variety of pathogens, safe for use in humans, and are easily manufactured and stored, making this therapeutic approach for the treatment of food allergies highly feasible.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Apr 04, 2016
- Source ID
- W81XWH1510233
Entities
People
- James R. Baker Jr.
Organizations
- United States Army
- University of Michigan