m218 rAsp f 1

Allergens within Molds and other Microorganisms

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  • Latin name: Aspergillus fumigatus
  • Source material: An E. coli strain carrying a cloned cDNA encoding Aspergillus fumigatus allergen Asp f 1.
rAsp f 1
Asp f 1 is considered a major allergen of Aspergillus fumigatus, originally identified as such by Arruda et al. (1990). Elevated specific IgE to Asp f 1 has been found in 45-90 % of subjects sensitized to A. fumigatus. The 18 kD protein is a homologue of the secreted cytotoxic ribonuclease mitogillin (also known as restrictocin) from A. restrictus and may play a role in the pathogenesis of the fungus.
 
Five different single allergen components from Aspergillus fumigatus have been produced with recombinant technique. Three of these; rAsp f 2, rAsp f 4 and rAsp f 6 have been shown to be dominating allergens in Allergic Bronchopulmonary Aspergillosis (ABPA) (rAsp f 6: ref 4), but has to be further investigated. ABPA is a complicated-to-diagnose and life-threatening disease. E.g. asthmatics and patients with cystic fibrosis, where ABPA could be a complication, might benefit from the use of these IgE tests with single components.

References:

    1. Arruda, L. K., Platts-Mills, T. A. E., Fox, J. W. and Chapman, M. D. (1990). Aspergillus fumigatus allergen I, a major IgE-binding protein, is a member of the mitogillin family of cytotoxins. J. Exp. Med. 172:1529-1532.
    2. Arruda, L. K., Mann, B. J. and Chapman, M. D. (1992). Selective expression of a major allergen and cytotoxin, Asp f I, in Aspergillus fumigatus. Implications for the immunopathogenesis of Aspergillus-related diseases. J. Immunol. 149:3354-3359.
    3. Crameri, R., Lidholm, J., Grönlund, H., Stüber, D., Blaser, K. and Menz, G. (1996). Automated specific IgE assay with recombinant allergens: evaluation of the recombinant Aspergillus fumigatus allergen I in the Pharmacia CAP System. Clin. Exp. Allergy 26:1411-1419.
    4. Disch, R., Menz, G., Blaser, K. and Crameri, R. (1995). Different reactivity to recombinant Aspergillus fumigatus allergen I/a in patients with atopic dermatitis or allergic asthma sensitised to Aspergillus fumigatus. Int. Arch. Allergy Immunol. 108:89-94.
    5. Fernandez-Luna, J. L., Lopez-Otin, C., Soriano, F. and Mendez, E. (1985). Complete amino acid sequence of the Aspergillus cytotoxin mitogillin. Biochemistry 24:861-867.
    6. Kurup, V. P., Kumar, A., Kenealy, W. R. and Greenberger, P. A. (1994). Aspergillus ribotoxins react with IgE and IgG antibodies of patients with allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis. J. Lab. Clin. Med. 123:749-756.
    7. Kurup, V. P., Banerjee, B., Murali, P. S., Greenberger, P. A., Krishnan, M., Hari, V. and Fink, J. N. (1998). Immunodominant peptide epitopes of allergen, Asp f1 from the fungus Aspergillus fumigatus. Peptides 19:1469-1477.
    8. Lamy, B. and Davies, J. (1991). Isolation and nucleotide sequence of the Aspergillus restrictus gene coding for the ribonucleolytic toxin restrictocin and its expression in Aspergillus nidulans: the leader sequence protects producing strains from suicide. Nucleic Acids Res. 19:1001-1006.
    9. Latge, J. P., Moutaouakil, M., Debeaupuis, J. P., Bouchara, J. P., Haynes, K. and Prevost, M. C. (1991). The 18-kilodalton antigen secreted by Aspergillus fumigatus. Infection & Immunity 59:2586-94.
    10. Martinez, S. E. and Smith, J. L. (1991). Crystallization and preliminary characterization of mitogillin, a ribosomal ribonuclease from Aspergillus restrictus. J. Mol. Biol. 218:489-492.
    11. Moser, M., Crameri, R., Menz, G., Schneider, T., Dudler, T., Virchow, C., Gmachl, M., Blaser, K. and Suter, M. (1992). Cloning and expression of recombinant Aspergillus fumigatus allergen 1/a (rAsp f I/a) with IgE binding and type I skin test activity. J. Immunol. 149:454-460.
    12. Moser, M., Crameri, R., Menz, G. and Suter, M. (1993). Recombinant Aspergillus fumigatus allergen I/a (rAsp f I/a) in the diagnosis of Aspergillus related diseases. Agents Actions 43:131-137.
    13. Moser, M., Crameri, R., Brust, E., Suter, M. and Menz, G. (1994). Diagnostic value of recombinant Aspergillus fumigatus allergen I/a for skin testing and serology. J. Allergy Clin. Immunol. 93:1-11.
    14. Nikolaizik, W. H., Crameri, R., Blaser, K. and Schöni, M. H. (1996). Skin test reactivity to recombinant Aspergillus fumigatus allergen I/a in patients with cystic fibrosis. Int. Arch. Allergy Immunol. 111:403-408.
    15. Sporik, R. B., Arruda, L. K., Woodfolk, J., Chapman, M. D. and Platts-Mills, T. A. E. (1993). Environmental exposure to Aspergillus fumigatus allergen (Asp f I). Clin. Exp. Allergy 23:326-331.

2002