About the project:
Modern European living conditions are creating a cascade of events that lead to an increase in allergies. The changes in food processing, food intake, mucosal permeability and immune reactivity to allergens need to be understood in depth before appropriate interventions are possible. This process may be facilitated when a more global view of food allergies is taken. This, because, allergic disorders have been increasing in prevalence particularly in western countries. If we are to understand why allergies are increasing, we need to study regions that are in transition; with lifestyles that represent Europe one hundred years ago and moving towards lifestyles that resemble modern Europ.
By understanding the causes and mechanisms that underlie the apparent tolerance for allergens in some geographical areas where prevalences of allergies are low, one can make knowledge based plans to combat allergic disorders in Europ However, most studies thus far have been examining inhalant allergies and now food allergies need to be addressed in particular. The estimates of food allergies are considered to be imprecise and many pan-European efforts are being put into applying standardised diagnostic methods to get accurate measures. It is important to plan ahead and aim to build up strong teams that are able to do research in the area of food allergy in regions where allergies are less common. There is currently no medical or paramedical staff with a good perception/knowledge of food allergy.
The present proposal aims to bring together a group of European experts in the area of food allergy who will train a number of medical doctors, nurses and scientists from African and Asian centers by organising workshops and laboratory based courses. With the view to the future this will stimulate International Cooperation, will disseminate knowledge and will allow Europe to build robust databases that can be utilised to understand the processes that lead to increasing allergies.
By understanding the causes and mechanisms that underlie the apparent tolerance for allergens in some geographical areas where prevalences of allergies are low, one can make knowledge based plans to combat allergic disorders in Europ However, most studies thus far have been examining inhalant allergies and now food allergies need to be addressed in particular. The estimates of food allergies are considered to be imprecise and many pan-European efforts are being put into applying standardised diagnostic methods to get accurate measures. It is important to plan ahead and aim to build up strong teams that are able to do research in the area of food allergy in regions where allergies are less common. There is currently no medical or paramedical staff with a good perception/knowledge of food allergy.
The present proposal aims to bring together a group of European experts in the area of food allergy who will train a number of medical doctors, nurses and scientists from African and Asian centers by organising workshops and laboratory based courses. With the view to the future this will stimulate International Cooperation, will disseminate knowledge and will allow Europe to build robust databases that can be utilised to understand the processes that lead to increasing allergies.
Overall Objective
The overall aim of the project is to deliver the information and tools necessary for researchers in African and Asian countries to produce robust data on the prevalence of food allergy. This will set the stage for future international cooperation to understand the influence of diet, environment and infections on the development of food allergy.
Specific Objectives
The Specific Support Actions program will be used to transfer knowledge and technology from European expert centers to international research groups (INT) in Ghana, Gabon and Indonesia. This will be achieved by:
Distance based learning and workshops in European, African and Asian centers:
Why these objectives?
The prevalence of allergic disorders is increasing worldwide, however, considerable geographical differences are observed. The prevalence of allergies is considerably higher in Western Europe compared with developing countries. This difference is mainly attributable to the low prevalence of allergies in rural areas of the developing world. Urban centers such as Accra in Ghana or Makassar in Sulawesi, Indonesia are faced with increasing incidence of allergic diseases. Most of the epidemiological data concerning the increase in allergic disorders in western and urban centers have involved inhalant allergens. There is little reliable data on the prevalence of food allergies, and this is even more so when considering developing countries. It is important to have robust data on the magnitude of the problem that food allergy imposes worldwide. The data can on the one hand be used for policymaking regarding food consumption as well as budget allocation to appropriate health sectors. While on the other hand, the data can shed light on factors that protect from food allergies.
Although accurate data are missing, the consumption of peanut is very high in Ghana, Gabon and Indonesia. Yet there are few reports on peanut allergy in these countries. This could be due to inappropriate diagnosis, lower allergenicity of prepared peanut as well as the presence of protective immunological mechanisms that may be stimulated by high exposure to microbial products. There are no or very few clinicians with specific expertise in allergies and no laboratories are present that perform test to detect IgE to allergens in Ghana, Gabon and even Indonesia (where a few private clinics exist in Jakarta) in Indonesia. Methodologies to assess food consumption are lacking. There is a serious paucity of knowledge and expertise in the area of food allergy in these African and Asian countries.
Therefore, in order to be able to assess the global burden of food allergies and to use the insight to plan appropriate measures as well as novel intervention methods, it is important to build up strong teams that are able to generate reliable data that can be compared to data collected in Europe. The current project addresses this specifically by engaging groups with appropriate expertise from European institutions to transfer the tools that are needed to set up robust databases on the prevalence of food allergies in African and Asian centers.
Specific Objectives
The Specific Support Actions program will be used to transfer knowledge and technology from European expert centers to international research groups (INT) in Ghana, Gabon and Indonesia. This will be achieved by:
Distance based learning and workshops in European, African and Asian centers:
- To train two medical staff from each INT center in clinical assessment of food allergy (introduction of good clinical practice and issues on ethics)
- To demonstrate and train medical staff and health workers in non-invasive gut permeability testing
- To develop questionnaires in a locally specific and culturally sensitive manner which will estimate the prevalence of food allergy
- To train personnel (medical staff and nurses) in double blind placebo controlled food challenge (DBPCFC) testing
- To standardize and teach skin prick testing (SPT) using fresh food (prick to prick) as well as commercially available allergens
- To discuss setting up of epidemiological studies (data base organisation, power calculations, logistics)
- To provide tools to assess food utilisation and consumption
Laboratory based teaching in European, African and Asian centers: - Training in the in vitro measurement of specific IgE
- Assessment of cross sensitisation by pollen and house dust mite
- Standardized procedure for collection of blood by finger prick, whole blood stimulation assays and preservation of blood for RNA extraction
- Demonstration of immunological methods that measure antibodies and cytokines
- Demonstration of molecular biological methods that measure gene expression by quantitative PCR and determine genetic polymorphisms
Why these objectives?
The prevalence of allergic disorders is increasing worldwide, however, considerable geographical differences are observed. The prevalence of allergies is considerably higher in Western Europe compared with developing countries. This difference is mainly attributable to the low prevalence of allergies in rural areas of the developing world. Urban centers such as Accra in Ghana or Makassar in Sulawesi, Indonesia are faced with increasing incidence of allergic diseases. Most of the epidemiological data concerning the increase in allergic disorders in western and urban centers have involved inhalant allergens. There is little reliable data on the prevalence of food allergies, and this is even more so when considering developing countries. It is important to have robust data on the magnitude of the problem that food allergy imposes worldwide. The data can on the one hand be used for policymaking regarding food consumption as well as budget allocation to appropriate health sectors. While on the other hand, the data can shed light on factors that protect from food allergies.
Although accurate data are missing, the consumption of peanut is very high in Ghana, Gabon and Indonesia. Yet there are few reports on peanut allergy in these countries. This could be due to inappropriate diagnosis, lower allergenicity of prepared peanut as well as the presence of protective immunological mechanisms that may be stimulated by high exposure to microbial products. There are no or very few clinicians with specific expertise in allergies and no laboratories are present that perform test to detect IgE to allergens in Ghana, Gabon and even Indonesia (where a few private clinics exist in Jakarta) in Indonesia. Methodologies to assess food consumption are lacking. There is a serious paucity of knowledge and expertise in the area of food allergy in these African and Asian countries.
Therefore, in order to be able to assess the global burden of food allergies and to use the insight to plan appropriate measures as well as novel intervention methods, it is important to build up strong teams that are able to generate reliable data that can be compared to data collected in Europe. The current project addresses this specifically by engaging groups with appropriate expertise from European institutions to transfer the tools that are needed to set up robust databases on the prevalence of food allergies in African and Asian centers.
