Galactose-alpha-1,3-galactose (alpha-gal) - ticks

and red meat allergy

Chemical formula: C12H22O11

Molar mass: 342.30 g mol-1

Galactose-alpha-1,3-galactose, commonly known as alpha gal, is a carbohydrate found in most

mammalian cell membranes. It is not found in primates, including humans, whose immune systems
consequently recognize it as a foreign body and produce xenoreactive immunoglobulin M antibodies,
leading to organ rejection after transplantation. Anti-alpha gal immunoglobulin G antibodies are some of
the most common in humans. Regular stimulation from gut flora, typically initiated within the first six
months of life, leads to an exceptionally high titre of around 1% of all circulating IgG. Alpha gal has also
been suggested to play a role in a IgE-specific allergic response to some meats. Recent studies are
showing increasing evidence that this allergy may be induced by the bite of the lone star
tick (Amblyomma americanum) in North America and the castor bean tick (Ixodes ricincus) in Sweden.
How many allergies work

http://paleozonenutrition.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/immune-reaction.jpg
Fears of tick spreading among humans whose bite makes you allergic to meat
Symptoms of the allergy includes hives, shortness of breath and in some cases fainting

Lone Star tick iStock

A tick whose bite makes victims allergic to meat is spreading.

The Lone Star tick named for its white, Texas-shaped marking, carries a sugar molecule called alpha-1,
3-galactose, or Alpha-Gal for short, which reprograms peoples immune systems, rendering them forever
allergic to meat.

When bitten by a tick carrying Alpha-Gal, the bodys first response is to develop an antibody. Once this
happens, every time you consume the sugar molecule, which is present in red meat, your immune system
will attempt to fight it off, triggering an allergic reaction.

Symptoms of Alpha-Gal allergy syndrome include hives, shortness of breath, stomach cramps and in
more severe cases difficulty in breathing and fainting. In the rarest of cases, it can even cause death.

The tick traditionally makes its home in the south-eastern US states, however recently cases have popped
up in Hanover, Minnesota, Duluth and New Hampshire, suggesting its habitat is growing.

In Long Island, more than 100 cases were reported last year.

A warming climate has meant the ticks are expanding further north, causing outbreaks across the US,
allergist Purvi Parikh told USA Today.

Cosby Stone, an allergy and immunology fellow at Vanderbilt University told The National Geographic:
"Five years ago, we probably had about 50 or so patients that had Alpha-Gal [syndrome]. Now we have
about 200."

Researchers are still unsure what it is in the ticks saliva that causes the release of histamines whenever
red meat is consumed.
Theories include a bioactive compound similar enough in shape to an Alpha-Gal molecule to trigger the
reaction in the immune system. It could also be a bacterium or virus, or even residual protein from the
ticks previous feed.

The tick bite is one of few which affect people exactly the same way, no matter the genes or potential
predisposition.