Ragweed Pollen Allergy: burden, characteristics and management of an imported allergen source in Europe

Description

Ragweed pollen is known for its high potential to cause allergic reactions in late summer and autumn. It also represents a major health problem in America and several countries in Europe. Climate Change, urbanization and long distance transport enhance the spread of ragweed pollen. Thus ragweed is becoming domestic in non-invaded areas, which in turn will increase the sensitization rate. As of today, 11 ragweed allergens have been described and "Amb a 1" and "Amb a 11" seem to be major allergens. Sensitization rates of the other allergens vary between 10 and 50%. Most of the allergens have already been recombinantly produced, but most of them have not been characterized regarding their allergenic activity. Thus no conclusion on the clinical relevance of all the allergens can be made, which is important and necessary for an accurate diagnosis. The most common treatment for ragweed pollen allergy is pharmacotherapy, but it fails to impact on the course of allergy.

Currently, diagnosis as well as allergen-specific immunotherapy (AIT), which represents the only treatment that can alter the natural course of the allergic disease, are mainly based on ragweed pollen extracts and they have their limits regarding precision in diagnosis and efficacy in treatment. Innovative strategies for ragweed AIT are under development but no promising candidates are present. In order to improve ragweed pollen AIT, new strategies are required with higher efficacy and safety.

Reference information