IgE sensitization to inhalable and ingestable fungi by means of a new allergy test in three different continents: A preliminary report

Background:Fungi are eukaryotic organisms including molds andyeasts, as well as mushrooms. They are classified in the kingdom ofFungi, different from the other eukaryotic life kingdoms of plantsand animals. Although Fungi are ubiquitous, their growth is influ-enced by climatic conditions. Mold spores are a component ofhousehold and workplace dust, as well as the outdoor environments,and they potentially can cause allergic reactions and respiratoryproblems. Alike some allergic reactions to yeasts and mushrooms aredescribed in literature. Objectives of the study is to explore molds,yeasts, mushrooms sensitization in the sera collected from three dif-ferent continents: Europe, Asia and Americas. Method:The sera of 6106 patients were tested for specific IgE bymeans of FABER®test. The analysis was focused on 10 allergenicpreparations: 3 proteins (Alt a 1, Alt a 6, Asp r 1) and 7 extracts (Aspf, Asp n, Cand a, Cla h, Ple o [Sporocarp], Sac c, Tri me). Results:Out of the 6106 analyzed patients, average age33.4 years, 1074 (17.6%) are positive to at least one of the testedallergenic preparations (Americas 27.6%, Asia 24.8%, Europe 16.9%).Different patterns of sensitizations to fungi are present, based onthe continent of origin. Within the sera from Americas the preva-lence of sensitization to molds'genuine protein is: Alt a 1 14.5%; Alta 6 5.3%; Asp r 1 3.9%; to molds extracts: Asp f 5.3%; Asp n 9.2%;Cla h 10.5%; Tri me 6.6%; yeasts extracts: Cand a 14.5%; 2.6% forSac c; to mushrooms extracts: Ple o 0%.Within the sera from Asia the prevalence of sensitization to molds'genuine protein is: Alt a 1 5.1%; 1.4% for Alt a 6; 3.0% for Asp r 1;to molds extracts: Asp f 6.7%; Asp n 13%; Cla h 14.8%; Tri me11.4%; to yeasts extracts: Cand a 13.9%; Sac c 6.3%; to mushroomsextracts: Ple o 1.4%.Within the sera from Europe the prevalence of sensitization tomolds'genuine protein is: Alt a 18.3%; Alt a 60.9%; Asp r 11.6%; tomolds extracts: Asp f 1.2%; Asp n 4%; Cla h 4.3%; Tri me 3%; toyeasts extracts: Cand a 4.1%; Sac c 0.8%; to mushrooms extracts:Ple o 0.6%. Conclusion:IgE detection by means of the FABER multiplex testallows a homogeneous view of the sensitization profiles and pro-vides different results for patients belonging to different continents.Patterns of sensitization look different among geographical area.Due to the number of observations, unwanted biases could still bepresent so that, in order to draw conclusions, the study should beextended to larger cohorts of patients.