Sensitisation to Pollen Allergens in Children and Adolescents of Different Ancestry Born and Living in the Same Area

Abstract

Maria Luisa Somoza1 *, Natalia Pérez-Sánchez2 *, Isabel Torres-Rojas,1 Laura Martín-Pedraza,3 Natalia Blanca-López,1 Laura Victorio Puche,4 Eva Abel Fernández González,5 José Damián López Sánchez,6 Javier Fernández-Sánchez,7,8 Enrique Fernández-Caldas,5,9 Mayte Villalba,10 Francisco Javier Ruano,1 José Antonio Cornejo-García11 *, Gabriela Canto1,12 *, Miguel Blanca3 ⨚llergy Department, Infanta Leonor University Hospital, Madrid, Spain; 2Allergy Department, Hospital Regional Universitario de Málaga, Málaga-IBIMA (FIMABIS), Málaga, Spain; 3Allergy Department, Fundación para la Investigación e Innovación Biomédica (FIIB) de los Hospitales Universitarios Infanta Leonor y Sureste, Madrid, Spain; 4Allergy Department, Morales Meseguer General University Hospital, Murcia, Spain; 5R&D Department, Inmunotek Laboratories, Madrid, Spain; 6Allergy Department, Virgen de la Arrixaca Clinical University Hospital, Murcia, Spain; 7Allergy Department, General University Hospital of Alicante- ISABIAL, Alicante, Spain; 8Clinical Medicine Department, Miguel Hernandez University, Alicante, Spain; 9Division of Allergy and Immunology, University of South Florida College of Medicine, Tampa, FL, USA; 10Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain; 11Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de Málaga-IBIMA (FIMABIS), Málaga, Spain; 12School of Medicine, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Maria Luisa Somoza, Email [email protected]: Allergy can start at early ages, with genetic and environmental factors contributing to its development.Aim: The study aimed to describe the pattern of sensitisation and allergy in children and adolescents of Spanish versus Moroccan ancestry but born in the same rural area of Spain.Methods: Participants were children and adolescents (3– 19 years) of Spanish or Moroccan descent, born in Blanca, Murcia (Spain). A detailed questionnaire was completed, and skin prick tests were performed to assess reactions to the most prevalent pollen allergens (O. europaea, P. pratense, S. kali, C. arizonica, P. acerifolia, A. vulgaris and P. judaica) plus molecular components Ole e 1 and Ole e 7. The association with ancestry was verified by studying participants’ parents.Results: The study included 693 participants: 48% were aged 3– 9 years and 52%, 10– 19 years; 80% were of Spanish descent and 20% of Moroccan descent. Sensitisation to Olea europaea, Phleum pratense, Salsola kali and Cupressus arizonica were slightly higher in the Spanish group. The only significant differences were observed in sensitisation to Ole e 1 (p=0.02). Rhinitis, conjunctivitis, and rhinitis plus asthma were significantly higher in the Spanish group (p=0.03, p=0.02, p=0.007, respectively). The sensitisation pattern differed between Spanish and Moroccan parents, and between Moroccan parents and their children, but not between Spanish parents and their children.Conclusion: Both environment and ancestry may influence sensitisation and symptoms. Although the environment seems to have a stronger influence, other factors may contribute to the differences in prevalence and in the clinical entities in people of Spanish versus Moroccan descent.Keywords: ancestry, pollen sensitisation, children/adolescents, olive tree pollen, molecular components, respiratory allergy

Keywords

• ancestry
• pollen sensitisation
• children/adolescents
• olive tree pollen
• molecular components
• respiratory allergy.