Hymenoptera allergens: from venom to “venome”

Mini Review ARTICLE

Front. Immunol., 28 February 2014 | doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2014.00077

Edzard Spillner1*, Simon Blank2 and Thilo Jakob3*

• 1Immunological Engineering, Department of Engineering, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
• 2Center of Allergy and Environment (ZAUM), Helmholtz Center Munich, Technical University, Munich, Germany
• 3Allergy Research Group, Department of Dermatology, Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany

In Western Europe, Hymenoptera venom allergy (HVA) primarily relates to venoms of the honeybee and the common yellow jacket. In contrast to other allergen sources, only a few major components of Hymenoptera venoms had been characterized until recently. Improved expression systems and proteomic detection strategies have allowed the identification and characterization of a wide range of additional allergens. The field of HVA research has moved rapidly from focusing on venom extract and single major allergens to a molecular understanding of the entire “venome” as a system of unique and characteristic components. An increasing number of such components has been identified, characterized regarding function, and assessed for allergenic potential. Moreover, advanced expression strategies for recombinant production of venom allergens allow selective modification of molecules and provide insight into different types of immunoglobulin E reactivities and sensitization patterns. The obtained information contributes to an increased diagnostic precision in HVA and may serve for monitoring, re-evaluation, and improvement of current therapeutic strategies.

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Keywords: allergen components, allergy, cross-reactivity, insect venom, recombinant allergens, sensitization

Citation: Spillner E, Blank S and Jakob T (2014) Hymenoptera allergens: from venom to “venome”. Front. Immunol. 5:77. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2014.00077

Received: 23 November 2013; Accepted: 12 February 2014; Published online: 28 February 2014.

Edited by:

Christiane Hilger, Centre de Recherche Public Santé, Luxembourg

Reviewed by:

Robert T. Wheeler, University of Maine, USA
Andreas Kerstan, University Hospital of Würzburg, Germany

Copyright: © 2014 Spillner, Blank and Jakob. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Edzard Spillner, Immunological Engineering, Department of Engineering, Aarhus University, Gustav Wieds Vej 10, Aarhus C, Aarhus 8000, Denmark e-mail: e.spillner@eng.au.dk;
Thilo Jakob, Allergy Research Group, Department of Dermatology, Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Hauptstr. 7, Freiburg 79104, Germany e-mail: thilo.jakob@uniklinik-freiburg.de

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