Background: Polypeptides in Hevea latex are known as the major cause of latex type I sensitivities. So far, only a few of them have been characterized.
Methods: Proteins with a molecular weight lower than 10 kd in fresh Hevea latex were separated by ultrafiltration and further characterized by liquid chromatography on-line-coupled electrospray mass spectrometry. Hevein in this fraction was then purified by preparative reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography and characterized by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry and protein sequencing. Skin prick tests, enzyme-linked allergosorbent tests, and inhibition immunoblotting were performed to show the allergenicity of the purified hevein.
Results: Hevein, a 4.7 kd polypeptide, is the predominant component in the fraction with latex proteins of smaller than 10 kd. Specific IgE antibodies to hevein were detected by enzyme-linked allergosorbent test in 48 of 64 (75%) sera from health care workers allergic to latex and in three of 11 (27%) sera from patients with spina bifida and hypersensitivity reactions to latex. Inhibition immunoblotting demonstrated that the preincubation of 14 sera and a serum pool from patients allergic to latex with purified hevein completely inhibited IgE binding to the 20 kd protein, which has been recently reported to be a major allergen in latex (prohevein). Skin prick testing showed a positive reaction to hevein in 17 of 21 (81%) patients with latex allergy.
Conclusions: The results clearly demonstrate that hevein is an important latex allergen, and the IgE-binding capacity of prohevein in latex is mostly attributed to hevein, the N-terminal domain of prohevein.