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food-induced allergic reactions are milk, eggs, peanuts, fish, and tree nuts in
children, and peanuts, tree nuts, fish, and shellfish in adults [1]. There are some
reports in the literature on allergic reactions to potatoes; for example, a child
developed urticaria and angioedema after eating a potato [2,3], bronchial asthma
was induced in an individual while peeling a raw potato [4], and anaphylaxis de-
veloped in response to raw potatoes [5]. Furthermore, potatoes have been found
to cross-react with birch pollen, fruits, and latex [6,7].
Agricultural biotechnology has tremendous implications for both agriculture
and the general public. Insect-resistant corn and herbicide-tolerant soybeans are
grown on 30-50% of the total acreage planted with these crops in North Amer-
ica [8]. Previous studies comparing the allergenicity of wild-type and genetically
modified (GM) corn demonstrated that the allergic risk was not increased after
genetic manipulation [9-11]. In Korea, potato, soybean, and corn are the most
commonly exposed GM foods; however, to date, there are no reports on the al-
lergenic risk of GM potatoes.
In this study, the sensitization rates of adult allergy patients in response to
wild-type and GM potatoes were evaluated by skin-prick test and ELISA (enzyme
linked immunosorbent assay). SDS-PAGE (sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylam-
ide gel electrophoresis) and IgE-immunoblotting were carried out to identify the
major allergens present in the potato extracts. To evaluate the effects of digestive
enzymes and heat on the allergenicity of the two types of potato, the extracts were
preincubated with or without simulated gastric and intestinal fluids in the pres-
ence or absence of heat.
Methods
subjects
Sensitization rates to the two potato extracts were evaluated in 1886 allergy pa-
tients and in 38 healthy non-atopic subjects. The participants, who ranged in age
from 15 to 65 years, were enrolled in the study by the Department of Allergy
and Rheumatology, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea. The GM
potato, carrying the neomycin phosphotransferase II (NPTII) and phosphino-
thricin acetyltransferase (PAT) genes (Table 1), was provided by ChonBuk Na-
tional University, Chunju, Korea. The wild-type potato was produced in Korea.
From January 2004 to October 2004, 1886 patients admitted to the hospital for
the treatment of various allergic diseases, including asthma, allergic rhinitis, and
food and drug allergy, were skin-prick tested with common inhalant allergens and
with extracts from GM and wild-type potatoes. In the skin-prick tests, 50 com-
mon inhalant allergens, 30 food allergens, and the potato extracts were applied
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