DrNanoDAll

ABSTRACT

Betalactam (BL) allergy is self-reported by approximately 10% of the population with adverse drug reactions (ADR), being most frequently induced by an IgE mediated mechanism. This ADR has implications for patient safety and Health Systems costs since prescription of alternative antibiotics could induce bacterial resistance, could be more expensive and could potentially be more toxic. IgE-mediated BL allergy varies among patients, with some reacting to only one BL and others to several; it tends to change over time and differs between European countries, depending on BL consumption. BL allergy diagnosis is challenging, relying on patient clinical history, where previous BL-ADR evidence are often inaccurately reported, and on drug provocation and / or skin tests, which are not risk-exempt and require specialized healthcare professionals for results interpretation and patient management. In vitro testing stands out as the more rational alternative diagnostic method, showing however various limitations, such as low sensibility. Immunoassay for quantifying specific IgE is the most used, although limited to few BLs. 

Basophil activation test is also used, although the lack of knowledge about the activation mechanisms has hampered a wider clinical application. Thus, nowadays these tests do not fulfill the clinician’s needs. DrNanoDAll proposes the development of nanoparticles decorated with BL dendrimeric antigens, innovative solutions to surpass the current limitations. In order to offer new in vitro tools for BL-allergy accurate diagnosis, this proposal will combine nanotechnological and immunological approaches with BL-allergy clinical expertise, implementing a multi-omics workflow and involving the industry for scaling up nanomaterials and clinical test validation steps. 

This European-wide collaboration will be crucial to generate a new BL-allergy diagnosis tool suitable for personalized medicine, which will impact positively on the European Health Systems.