FAREDAT: Food allergy risk evaluation based on improved diagnosis, allergens and test methods

• Research unit: EU RFP
• Project number: 01.0159-2

Key words (English)

Environmental Protection; Life Sciences; Medicine; Health; Safety

Alternative project number (English)

EU project number: QLK4-CT-2001-00301

Research programs (English)

EU-programme: 5. Frame Research Programme - 1.1.4 Environment and health

Short description (English)

See abstract

Further information (English)

Full name of research-institution/enterprise:
Universität Zürich
SIAF Swiss Institute of Allergy & Asthma Research
Molecular Allergology

Abstract (English)

Symptoms of food allergy range from mild oral symptoms to life-threatening anaphylactic shocks. Besides treating the symptoms, the only form of treatment is avoidance of contact between the allergens in the offending food and the patient. Others and we reduce the allergens in foods by physic-chemical methods, but this has only been partly successful. Genetically modified low-allergenic plants may be an alternative, but the risk of exposure to hidden allergens in unsuspected foods remains. To allow for risk assessment at several levels in the community, we aim to quantitatively describe symptom-eliciting allergen dosages, and to develop sensitive assays allowing producers, authorities and finally the individual consumer/patient to measure allergens in foods. Cereals and legumes are selected for the study, comprising clinical studies, characterization of native allergens, production of recombinant allergens and new analyses.

References in databases (English)

Swiss Database: Euro-DB of the
State Secretariat for Education and Research
Hallwylstrasse 4
CH-3003 Berne, Switzerland
Tel. [phone]
Swiss Project-Number: 01.0159-2