Plant‐based enveloped Ara h 2 bioparticles display exceptional hypo‐allergenicity.

Keywords: allergen immunotherapy; bioparticle; food allergy; hypoallergenicity; peanut allergy; plant-based particle EN allergen immunotherapy bioparticle food allergy hypoallergenicity peanut allergy plant-based particle 577 581 5 05/10/23 20230501 NES 230501 Key messages Ara h 2 eBPs show reduced IgE binding, effector cell activation, and IgE-facilitated antigen presentation compared to nAra h 2 Ara h 2 eBPs are >10,000-fold hypoallergenic compared to nAra h 2 Ara h 2 eBPs are a promising candidate for peanut allergen immunotherapy To the Editor: Since the early nineties several approaches have been tested to develop safe and effective allergen immunotherapy (AIT) for the treatment of peanut allergy, starting with subcutaneous AIT with aqueous extract, followed by hypo-allergenic major allergens produced in bacteria that were administered rectally. For example, a virus-based particle expressing the peanut allergens Ara h 1 or 2, based on the Cucumber Mosaic Virus, was shown to be hypo-allergenic in a mouse model.[3] Here we report the ground-breaking hypo-allergenicity of a novel non-virus-based microparticle produced in plants, that is, enveloped bioparticles ( I e i BPs) expressing ~3000 copies of Ara h 2 on the surface of each particle. These results indicate that the I e i BPs have a > 10,000-fold reduced capacity to form IgE-Ara h 2 complexes and subsequently activate Th2 cell responses via IgE-facilitated allergen presentation by B cells. [Extracted from the article]