Abstract
The potential for animal models to mimic the human disease process makes them an attractive tool for determining disease mechanisms, predicting disease triggers, and testing treatment regimens. With this in mind, animal models of food allergy have been receiving increasing attention as research tools to answer some of the difficult questions regarding food-allergy disease. Most of the food-allergy animal models developed to date have been designed to test reagents for immunotherapeutic treatment of allergic disease and to predict the potential human allergenicity of proteins. Current animal models under development are rodent, swine, and dog. The variables affecting development of such models include allergen concentration, allergen matrix or food source, allergen route of exposure, duration, animal age, adjuvant use, and dose range of allergens. Each model presents opportunities for and barriers to a fuller understanding of the allergic response. The conditions inherent to each model and the intended purpose of the study should therefore be considered prior to its use.
Similar content being viewed by others
References and Recommended Reading
Sampson HA: Food allergy: accurately identifying clinical reactivity. Allergy 2005, 60:19–24.
Hefle S, Nordlee JA, Taylor SL: Allergenic foods. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr 1996, 36:S69–89.
Bock SA, et al.: Food Allergy: Adverse Reactions to Foods and Food Additives, edn 3. Malden, MA: Blackwell; 2003.
Knippels LMJ, an WijkF, Penninks AH: Food allergy: what do we learn from animal models? Curr Opin Allergy Clin Immunol 2004, 4:205–209.
Morafo V, Srivastava K, Huang K, et al.: Genetic susceptibility to food allergy is linked to differential Th2-Th1 responses in c3h/hej and balb/c mice. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2003, 111:1122–1128. The link between IgE levels and clinical reactivity to allergens is explored in different strains of the mouse model. Variable results in a mouse model and the basis for variations are discussed relative to the human clinical response to allergens.
Pons L, Ponnappan U, Hale RA, et al.: Soy immunotherapy for peanut-allergic mice: modulation of the peanut-allergic response. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2004, 114:915–921.
Srivastava KD, Kattan JD, Zou ZM: The Chinese herbal medicine formula fahf-2 completely blocks anaphylactic reactions in a murine model of peanut allergy. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2005, 115:171–178.
Buchanan BB, Frick OL: The dog as a model for food allergy. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2002, 964:173–183.
Dearman RJ, Stone S, Caddick HT, et al.: Evaluation of protein allergenic potential in mice: dose-response analyses. Clin Exp Allergy 2003, 33:1586–1594.
Dearman RJ, Caddick H, Basketter DA, Kimber I: Divergent antibody isotype responses induced in mice by systemic exposure to proteins: a comparison of ovalbumin with bovine serum albumin. Food Chem Toxicol 2000, 38:351–360. This paper describes immunogenic response variations to a common food allergen, as well as a control antigen, at the immunoglobulin subtype level. Routes of exposure and dose are tested in a well-developed animal model, the in-bred mouse. Barriers and opportunities with animal models are represented in this study.
Fujihashi K, Dohi T, Rennert PD: Peyer’s patches are required for oral tolerance to proteins. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2001, 98:3310–3315.
Kroghsbo S, Christensen HR, Frokiaer H: Experimental parameters differentially affect the humoral response of the cholera-toxin-based murine model of food allergy. Int Arch Allergy Immunol 2003, 131:256–263.
Li XM, Schofield BH, Huang CC, et al.: A murine model of IgE-mediated cow’s milk hypersensitivity. J Allergy Clin Immunol 1999, 103:206–214.
Derer M, Morrison-Smith G, De Weck AL: Monoclonal anti-IgE antibodies in the diagnosis of dog allergy. Vet Derm 1998, 9:185–190.
Jackson HA, Jackson MW, Coblentz L, Hammerberg B: Evaluation of the clinical and allergen-specific serum immunoglobulin-E responses to oral challenge with cornstarch, corn, soy and a soy hydrolysate diet in dogs with spontaneous food allergy. Vet Derm 2003, 14:181–187.
Teuber SS, Val G, Morigaski S, et al.: The atopic dog as a model of peanut and tree nut food allergy. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2002, 110:921–927.
Helm RM, Ermel RW, Frick OL: Nonmurine animal models of food allergy. Environ Health Perspect 2003, 111:239–244.
Helm RM, Furita GT, Stanley JS, et al.: A neonatal swine model for peanut allergy. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2002, 109:136–142.
McGhee J, Kiyono H: The mucosal immune system. In Fundamental Immunology. Edited by Paul WE. San Diego: Academic; 1998.
Barone KS, Tolarova DD, Ormsby I, et al.: Induction of oral tolerance in TGF-beta 1 null mice. J Immunol 1998, 161:154–160. This paper addresses oral tolerance in the mouse model, a major barrier to further development of the model for allergy prediction. Response variables are explored at the cytokine level in wild-type versus genetic mutant test scenarios, using OVA as the allergen.
Thomas K, Herouet C, Bannon G, Ladics G: Evaluation of ip mouse models for assessing the allergenic potential of proteins. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2005, 115:S250-S250.
Blanco C, Sanchez-Garcia F, Torres-Galvan MJ, et al.: Genetic basis of the latex-fruit syndrome: association with HLA class II alleles in a Spanish population. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2004, 114:1070–1076.
Vieths S, Scheurer S, Ballmer-Weber B: Current understanding of cross-reactivity of food allergens and pollen. Ann NY Acad Sci 2002, 964:47–68.
Ferreira F, Hauranek T, Gruber P, et al.: Allergic cross-reactivity: from gene to the clinic. Allergy 2004, 59:243–267.
Madsen C, Pilegaard K: No priming of the immune response in newborn brown Norway rats dosed with ovalbumin in the mouth. Int Arch Allergy Immunol 2003, 130:66–72.
Kimber I, Kerkvliet NI, Taylor SL, et al.: Toxicology of protein allergenicity: prediction and characterization. Toxicol Sci 1999, 48:157–162.
Metcalfe DD, Astwood JD, Townsend R, et al.: Assessment of the allergenic potential of foods from genetically engineered crop plants. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr 1996, 36:S165-S186.
Bannon GA: What makes a food protein an allergen? Curr Allergy Asthma Rep 2004, 4:43–46.
Breiteneder H, Clare Mills EN: Plant food allergens: structural and functional aspects of allergenicity. Biotechnol Adv 2005, 23:395–399.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
McClain, S., Bannon, G.A. Animal models of food allergy: Opportunities and barriers. Curr Allergy Asthma Rep 6, 141–144 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11882-006-0052-1
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11882-006-0052-1