Aust Univ Rev 50(1):20–29″
“Introduction Cattle

are an important source of allergens in the working environment of farmers. Asthma caused by cow allergens is a significant occupational problem in many countries (Heutelbeck et al. 2007; Karjalainen et al. 2000; Reijula and Patterson 1994). Unlike many other chronic diseases which primarily Nutlin-3a chemical structure affect older people, asthma disproportionately affects Selleckchem Crenolanib younger people in their working age. The diagnosis of an occupational asthma caused by cattle allergen has grave economic and occupational consequences for the affected worker, especially in the light of the large number of young patients (Heutelbeck et al. 2007). This constitutes a paramount public health concern, as up to 40% are consequently rated as partially employment-disabled (Blanc et al. 1993, 1996). A diagnosis in an early state of sensitization might be helpful to avoid clinical manifestation of an allergic disease, if essential prevention strategies

were initiated. In contrast to extracts from cat or dog allergens, selleck kinase inhibitor only little is known about the composition and potency of cattle allergens. Crossed-immunoelectrophoresis extracts of cow hair and dander consisted of at least 17 different proteins whereas three major allergenic proteins were identified in cow dander as well as in other tissues and body fluids (Prahl 1980, 1981; Prahl et al. 1978, 1982). One of the large protein bands detected in all extracts with an estimated molecular

almost weight of 20 kDa has been described previously as major allergen Bos d 2 (Prahl et al. 1982; Rautiainen et al. 1997; Ylönen et al. 1992a, b). As to the allergological diagnosis of a cattle allergy, results of in vivo and in vitro tests are often inconsistent even in cases with clearly cattle-related symptoms. Clinical experience confirms previously published observations that allergy tests with commercial cattle allergen extracts occasionally show only slightly positive or even negative results even though the tested patients showed clearly cattle-related clinical symptoms (Wortmann 1984; Fuchs et al. 1981). Positive reactions with hair of the patients` own cattle have been reported, without a corresponding result using commercial extracts (Heutelbeck et al. 2007). In a number of cases, allergy tests with extracts of the hair of the patients’ cattle or of cattle of the same breed can thus yield better results. Similar phenomena were described elsewhere (Prahl et al. 1978; Ylönen et al. 1990). In some patients commercial test preparations of cow allergen did not confirm obviously cow related symptoms. The results appeared to be influenced by the composition of the cattle allergen extracts, possibly due to a lack of certain important allergens in the applied extract or breed-specific allergen components.