Transgenic Rice with Japanese Cedar Pollen Allergen Developed

Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) pollen, a potent seasonal aeroallergen causes cedar pollinosis with rhinitis, asthma and conjunctivitis as clinical symptoms in humans and dogs. The economic costs associated with this disease are already high and are expected to rise as healthcare costs increase and as environmental adjuvants, such as air pollutants, induce and aggravate the symptoms. The development of an affordable and clinically effective vaccine for controlling the disease is thus a high priority for public health.  

Japanese scientists were able to express a recombinant allergen Cry J 1 isolated from cedar pollen, fused with the rice glutelin in the rice endosperm. The Cry J 1 allergens give low specific IgE-binding activity but contain all of the T-cell epitopes of the allergen. About 15% of the total seed protein in transgenic rice contains the fused glutelin – Cry J 1 protein. The production of this recombinant protein can be used as a universal, safe and effective “tolerogen” for rice seed-based oral immunotherapy for cedar pollen allergy in humans and other mammals.  

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