PROTEIN NITRATION INFLUENCES ALLERGIC REACTIONS
Food proteins are nitrated through various processes. Just how these processes affect food
allergies, however, is only now coming to light. The latest findings of a research project funded
by the Austrian Science Fund FWF are being presented today at an international symposium
in Italy. The findings show that in the case of a particular food protein the nitrated form can
trigger a stronger allergic reaction than the non-nitrated form. At the same time, however, this
nitrated form of the protein is better digested and therefore rendered "harmless".
Use of this photo for editorial purposes is free of charge, subject to attribution: Eva Untersmayr (firmenpresse) -
It has been know for some time now that many proteins cause allergies. The fact that
proteins can be altered - nitrated - by environmental influences and that their allergenicity
can increase as a result is also known, but is a more recent discovery. What was not at all
known up to now was whether the nitration of food proteins through environmental
pollution or inflammatory processes in the body influences allergies. As of this past
weekend, we know substantially more: At the 28th Symposium of the Collegium
Internationale Allergologicum on Ischia, Italy, Dr. Eva Untersmayr presented the initial
findings of an ongoing research project funded by the Austrian Science Fund FWF.
CLEAR YET CONTRADICTORY RESULTS
Dr. Untersmayr, who works at the Department of Pathophysiology at the Medical University
of Vienna, explains her very surprising findings: "Increased allergenicity and yet fewer
allergic reactions. This is - to pinpoint it - the result of our studies on ovalbumin, an
important allergen found in eggs. If you compare the concentration of allergy markers, the
IgE antibodies, following the injection of ovalbumin in nitrated and non-nitrated form in our
animal model, a clear picture emerges: the nitrated ovalbumin has a stronger allergenic
effect. A clear picture also emerges when both forms of the protein are administered in
food and the same markers are measured again: the nitrated ovalbumin causes fewer
allergic reactions. The two outcomes thereby appear contradictory - at first glance."
For Dr. Untersmayr and her colleague Dr. Susanne Diesner this result was an important
indicator of the fact that although the nitrated form of the protein had a stronger
inflammatory effect than the non-nitrated form, the nitrated protein is degraded faster in
the digestive tract. To substantiate their ideas, they analysed the time taken for the
enzymatic digestion of the two forms of protein in a model system that simulated gastric
conditions. They actually succeeded to demonstrate that the nitrated form is rapidly
digested, while the non-nitrated protein remained stable for up to two hours. "A food
protein can actually only trigger an allergic reaction if it survives exposure to the gastric
juices unharmed and is absorbed into the blood in the intestine. This is not the case with
the nitrated ovalbumin we used as a model allergen despite the fact that it is actually
more allergenic," explains Dr. Untersmayr.
WHAT NEXT?
The data presented in Italy this weekend also show that the effect of the nitration is
already a complex process in animal models. Therefore, it would not be possible to apply
the findings to the human organism without further studies. And this is precisely what Dr.
Untersmayr would like to do next as part of her FWF project. Together with her research
partners, the group of Professor Albert Duschl in Salzburg, she is also interested in the
interaction between the bacterium Heliobacter pylori, one of the causes of gastric
inflammation, and the nitration of food proteins. In these studies, Dr. Untersmayr is
concentrating on the enzyme urease, which is produced by H. pylori. Should it emerge that
food proteins are nitrated by urease - and that these proteins are more allergenic than the
non-nitrated form - this would have to be taken into account in future treatment concepts
for both allergy sufferers and patients with inflammation of the stomach. For Dr. Untersmayr
this would mean that the value of a basic research project would not only be reflected in
terms of the knowledge gained, but also in concrete benefits for patients.
Image and text will be available online from Monday, 26th April 2010, 09.00 a.m. CET
onwards:
http://www.fwf.ac.at/en/public_relations/press/pv201004-2en.html
Scientific Contact:
Dr. Eva Untersmayr
Medical University of Vienna
Institut für Pathophysiologie
Währinger Gürtel 18-20 / E4Q
1090 Wien, Austria
T +43 / 1 / 40400 - 5121
M +43 / 650 / 778 75 58
E eva.untersmayr(at)meduniwien.ac.at
Austrian Science Fund FWF:
Mag. Stefan Bernhardt
Haus der Forschung
Sensengasse 1
1090 Wien, Austria
T +43 / 1 / 505 67 40 - 8111
E stefan.bernhardt(at)fwf.ac.at
W http://www.fwf.ac.at
Copy Editing & Distribution:
PR&D - Public Relations for Research & Education
Campus Vienna Biocenter 2
1030 Wien, Austria
T +43 / 1 / 505 70 44
E contact(at)prd.at
W http://www.prd.at
Vienna, 26th April 2010
Unternehmensinformation / Kurzprofil:
Datum: 26.04.2010 - 17:28 Uhr
Sprache: Deutsch
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Typ of Press Release: bitte
type of sending: Veröffentlichung
Date of sending: 26.04.2010
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