Other Allergens
Genus/species | Saccharomyces |
Family | Saccharomycetaceae |
Distribution | — |
Comments | It is a species of yeast. It is perhaps the most useful yeast, having been instrumental to winemaking, baking, and brewing since ancient times. It is believed to have been originally isolated from the skin of grapes (one can see the yeast as a component of the thin white film on the skins of some dark-color fruits such as plums; it exists among the waxes of the cuticle). It is one of the most intensively studied eukaryotic model organisms in molecular and cell biology, much like Escherichia coli as the model bacterium. It is the microorganism behind the most common type of fermentation. S. cerevisiae cells are round to ovoid, 5-10 um in diameter. It reproduces by a division process known as budding |
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Genus/species | — |
Family | — |
Distribution | — |
Comments | Prior to allergy skin tests, a negative saline control test may be performed. A negative control test involves applying a saline solution that does not include any allergens. Patients who react to this solution may have skin that is too sensitive to allow correct interpretation of allergy skin tests. |
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Genus/species | Theobroma |
Family | Malvaceae |
Distribution | The cacao tree is native to the Americas. It may have originated in the foothills of the Andes in the Amazon and Orinocobasins of South America, current day Colombia and Venezuela. |
Comments |
The cocoa bean, also cacao bean or cocoa or cacao, is the dried and fully fermented fatty seed of Theobroma cacao, from which cocoa solids and cocoa butter are extracted. They are the basis of chocolate, as well as many Mesoamerican foods such as mole sauce and tejate. The word Cocoa derives from the Spanish word cacao, derived from theNahuatl word cacahuatl. The Nahautl word, in turn, ultimately derives from the reconstructed Proto Mije-Sokean word *kakaw~*kakawa. Cocoa can often also refer to the drink commonly known as hot chocolate to cocoa powder, the dry powder made by grinding cocoa seeds and removing the cocoa butter from the dark, bitter cocoa solids; or to a mixture of cocoa powder and cocoa butter. |
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Genus/species | Gallus domesticus |
Family | Phasianidae |
Distribution | Breeders as well as workers in the food processing industry are examples of groups with high risk of exposure. Other means of exposure are pillows made of feathers, arts and crafts that include feathers, and wing feathers used in fletching arrows. A few breeds of are raised chiefly for their ornamental appearance or as pets. |
Comments | Farm workers handling animal feeds are exposed to a variety of chemicals, some of which may cause allergic contact dermatitis. |
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Genus/species | — |
Family | — |
Distribution | Throughout the body. |
Comments |
Prior to allergy skin tests, a positive histamine control test may be performed. A positive control test is used to determine if the patient reacts to histamine. If the patient does not immediately react to histamine, the results of allergy skin tests can be difficult to interpret. An allergic reaction is triggered by the particular substance (allergen) that a person is allergic to. When exposed to this allergen, the body senses a foreign invader. The allergen binds to the IgE antibodies. When this happens, the mast cell breaks open to release inflammatory substances, e.g. histamine, which quickly travels through the body to fight off what it senses as harmful. The histamine affects the body tissue and causes an inflammation. The symptoms that develop will depend on where in the body the histamine is released. Runny nose, itchy, watery eyes, shortness of breath and dry skin may all be sings of mast cells reacting in respective parts of the body. Allergic reactions can be more serious and impose a threat to overall well-being. And in some rare cases, specific foods, drugs or an insect bite can result in sudden, life-threatening anaphylactic shock. Mast cells are an important part of the immune system and can be found throughout the body. Inside the mast cells are different chemicals, for example histamine, that cause inflammation. |
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Genus/species | Humulus |
Family | Cannabaceae |
Distribution | Humulus lupulus (common hop or hop) is a species of flowering plant in the Cannabaceae family, native to Europe, western Asia and North America. |
Comments | H. lupulus is a main ingredient of many beers, and as such is widely cultivated for use by the brewing industry. The plant is a perennial climber growing to 6 m at a medium rate. Leaves are opposite, deeply divided into 5-7 palmate lobes, with serrate edges and a rough upper surface and pubescent underside, on a long petiole. Hop is dioecious, with separate male and female plants. Male flowers are yellow-green, arranged on 15-25 cm-long, narrowly spreading panicles. Female flowers are catkin-like drooping spikes 5 mm in diameter. The plant is entirely wind-pollinated. “Hops” is the common term for either the dried flower heads as a whole or the extract, with a bitter taste and aromatic odour, from the dried pine cone-like fruit of the plant. Hops contribute flavour and aroma and act as a preservative in brewed alcoholic beverages, and are used medicinally mainly to treat sleep disturbances. The extract may be in solid, liquid or oil form. |
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Genus/species | Triticum |
Family | Poaceae |
Distribution | Wheat is acereal grain, originally from the Levant ( historical geographical term referring to a large area in the eastern Mediterranean.) region of the Near East but now cultivated worldwide. |
Comments |
There are six wheat classifications: 1) hard red winter, 2) hard red spring, 3) soft red winter, 4) durum (hard), 5) hard white, and 6) soft white wheat. The hard wheats have the most amount of gluten and are used for making bread, rolls and all-purpose flour. The soft wheats are used for making flat bread, cakes, pastries, crackers, muffins, and biscuits. Wheat is widely cultivated as a cash crop because it produces a good yield per unit area, grows well in a temperate climate even with a moderately short growing season, and yields a versatile, high-quality flour that is widely used in baking. Most breads are made with wheat flour, including many breads named for the other grains they contain, for example, most rye and oat breads. The popularity of foods made from wheat flour creates a large demand for the grain, even in economies with significant food surpluses. |
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