Low percentage of clinically relevant pistachio nut and mango co-sensitisation in cashew nut sensitised children.

BACKGROUND: Cashew nut, pistachio nut and mango belong to the Anacardiaceae family and are botanically related. Therefore, cashew nut sensitised children are frequently advised to eliminate cashew nuts and pistachio nuts from their diet. The 'Improvement of Diagnostic mEthods for ALlergy assessment (IDEAL trial number NTR3572) study showed that cashew nut sensitised children were co-sensitised […]

Detection of Food Allergens by Taqman Real-Time PCR Methodology.

Real-time PCR (polymerase chain reaction) has shown to be a very effective technology for the detection of food allergens. The protocol described herein consists on a real-time PCR assay targeting the plant ITS (Internal Transcribed Spacer) region, using species-specific primers and hydrolysis probes (Taqman) dual labeled with a reporter fluorophore at the 5' end (6-carboxyfluorescein, […]

No difference in health-related quality of life, after a food challenge with cashew nut in children participating in a clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies showed that Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQL) significantly improved after the food challenge, with greater improvements in HRQL after a negative outcome than a positive outcome. It is currently unknown whether this also occurs in patients undergoing DBPCFCs with cashew nut in the context of a clinical trial. METHODS: Quality of life […]

Association of tree nut and coconut sensitization.

BACKGROUND: Coconut (Cocos nucifera), despite being a drupe, was added to the US Food and Drug Administration list of tree nuts in 2006, causing potential confusion regarding the prevalence of coconut allergy among tree nut allergic patients. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether sensitization to tree nuts is associated with increased odds of coconut sensitization. METHODS: A […]

Ana o 1 and Ana o 2 cashew allergens share cross-reactive CD4+ T-cell epitopes with other tree nuts.

BACKGROUND: Allergies to cashew are increasing in prevalence, with clinical symptoms ranging from oral pruritus to fatal anaphylactic reaction. Yet, cashew-specific T-cell epitopes and T-cell cross-reactivity amongst cashew and other tree nut allergens in humans remain uncharacterized. OBJECTIVES: In this study, we characterized cashew specific T-cell responses in cashew allergic subjects and examined cross-reactivity of […]

Multicentre Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Food Challenge Study in Children Sensitised to Cashew Nut.

BACKGROUND: Few studies with a limited number of patients have provided indications that cashew-allergic patients may experience severe allergic reactions to minimal amounts of cashew nut. The objectives of this multicentre study were to assess the clinical relevance of cashew nut sensitisation, to study the clinical reaction patterns in double-blind placebo-controlled food challenge tests and […]

Ethnic differences in prevalence of cashew nut, pistachio nut and almond allergy.

Allergy to peanuts and tree nuts is one of the most serious food allergies affecting children in English-speaking westernised countries like the USA, UK and Australia. The prevalence of peanut allergy (PA) in these regions is as high as 1-3% and is possibly increasing whereas it appears to be uncommon in developing communities in Africa […]

Bioavailability assessment of essential and toxic metals in edible nuts and seeds.

Bioavailability of essential and toxic metals in edible nuts and seeds has been assessed by using an in vitro dialyzability approach. The samples studied included walnuts, Brazil nuts, Macadamia nuts, pecans, hazelnuts, chestnuts, cashews, peanuts, pistachios and seeds (almond, pine, pumpkin and sunflower). Metals were measured by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry in dialyzates and also […]