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ARS Home » Southeast Area » New Orleans, Louisiana » Southern Regional Research Center » Food Processing and Sensory Quality Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #365737
Research Project: Reducing Peanut and Tree Nut Allergy

Location: Food Processing and Sensory Quality Research

Title: Eucheuma cottonii sulfated oligosaccharides decrease food allergic responses in animal models by up-regulating regulatory T (Treg) cells

Author
item XU, SHA-SHA - Jimei University
item LIU, GUANG-MING - Jimei University
item XIAO, AN-FENG - Jimei University
item Maleki, Soheila
item ALCOCER, MARCOS - University Of Nottingham
item GAO, YUAN-YUAN - Jimei University
item CAO, MIN-JIE - Jimei University
item LIU, GUANG-MING - Jimei University

Submitted to: Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/27/2017
Publication Date: 3/30/2017
Citation: Xu, S., Liu, G., Xiao, A., Maleki, S.J., Alcocer, M., Gao, Y., Cao, M., Liu, G. 2017. Eucheuma cottonii sulfated oligosaccharides decrease food allergic responses in animal models by up-regulating regulatory T (Treg) cells. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. 65:3212-3222. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.7b00389.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.7b00389

Interpretive Summary: Food allergy is a common, serious, and growing problem that affects nearly 5% of adults and 8% of children worldwide. It has long been known that particular foods, namely, peanuts, milk, shellfish, wheat, and tree nuts, are able to trigger food allergies. In China, 16.7% of the rural population is sensitized to shellfish or its derivatives. Tropomyosin (TM) was reported as the major sensitizing allergen in shellfish and has been widely chosen as the allergen to establish a food allergy model involving Chinese human studies. Food allergy is an immunoglobulin E (IgE)-dependent type I hypersensitivity reaction due to the imbalance of Th1/Th2. Interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-13 are responsible for class switching in B cells, which results in the production of allergen-specific IgE antibodies. Allergic reactions to foods are due to the interaction of allergen-specific IgE antibody with its highaffinity receptor (FceRI) on mast cells. When a specific antigen binds to the IgE linked to the FceRI, it establishes receptor cross-linking and consequent release of mediators.

Technical Abstract: In the present study, the anti-food allergy activity of Eucheuma cottonii sulfated oligosaccharide (ESO) was investigated. ESO was obtained by enzymatic degradation and purified by column chromatography. RBL-2H3 cells and BALB/c mouse model were used to test the anti-food allergy activity of ESO. The effects of ESO on the regulatory T (Treg) cells and bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMCs) were investigated by flow cytometry. The results of in vivo assay showed that ESO decreased the levels of mast cell protease-1 and histamine and inhibited the levels of specific IgE by 77.7%. In addition, the production of interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-13 was diminished in the ESO groups compared to the non-ESO-treated group. Furthermore, ESO could up-regulate Treg cells by 22.2-97.1%. In conclusion, ESO decreased the allergy response in mice by reducing basophil degranulation, up-regulating Treg cells via Forkhead box protein 3 (Foxp3), and releasing IL-10. ESO may have preventive and therapeutic potential in allergic disease.