Blood immune analysis to predict severity and threshold of the allergic response in children

Food allergies are a major health concern with about 6-8% of children Western
countries affected. Food allergies are associated with a risk of severe
reactions (anaphylaxis) to common ingredients (peanut, cow*s milk, egg and
nuts), having a great impact on quality of life of children and their families.
There is a lack of practicable precision diagnostics, and therefore children
need to undergo an oral food challenge test, which has a risk of severe
reactions.

Primary: Evaluate whether quantification of functional IgE on basophils of food
allergic patients can omit the need for food challenge tests to diagnose
severity and threshold of the allergic reaction. Secondary: Evaluate whether
numbers of immunophenotypes of allergen-specific B- and T-cells predict the
severity and/or threshold of the allergic reaction.

This is an observations study into which children (2-18 yr) are recruited with
a diagnosis of allergy. All recruits will be asked to donate 9-18mL of venous
blood for laboratory analysis. In addition, they will be asked to share basic
demographics (age, sex); details of allergic responses and current medication
use will be obtained from their medical records.

There is no perceived risk to the participants, investigators or institution.
Participants are having an additional 9-18 mL of blood sample taken along with
routine care. All blood sampling will follow Good Clinical Practice.
This research will not provide a direct therapeutic benefit to the participant.
However, we hope it will contribute by improving diagnosis, monitoring and
treatment of allergies in the future. The project will aid in identifying
potential biomarkers of allergy and treatment options. This project will have
positive impacts in the field of Allergy by potentially improving patient
diagnosis and treatment.