Longitudinal trajectory of multiplexed immunoglobulin E sensitization from prenatal stage to the first year of life

[[abstract]]Background: The longitudinal trajectory of allergen-specific IgE levels from the prenatal stage to early life has remained largely unexplored. Method: One hundred and three motherinfant pairs that were part of an ongoing population-based prospective birth cohort study of early childhood allergic diseases were included in this study. We examined the relationship of 20 allergen-specific IgE levels (including: D. pteronyssinus, D. farinae, Blomia tropicalis, cat dander, dog dander, German cockroach, Bermuda grass, Timothy grass, ragweed, Aspergillus fumigatus, Candida albicans, egg white, milk, codfish, wheat, peanut, soybean, almond, crab and shrimp) with blood samples of mothers, cord blood and infants at 12 months of age using the McNemar test. Results: A significant level of agreement was observed for most examined allergenspecific IgE levels in blood samples of mothers, cord blood and infants at 12 months of age. When we further examined the association between allergic related risk factors and atopic disease in infants at the first year of life, we found that there was positive association between colic pains at night and atopy in infants at 12 months of age (adjusted odds ratios (AOR) = 3.51; 95% confidence interval: 1.13 – 10.96; P = 0.03). Conclusion: Together, the findings from this study suggest that the influence of maternal allergen-specific IgE levels on infant immune response might occur at birth and then wane in infants at 12 months of age, and provide supportive evidence for the ‘Allergy March’ theory of allergy development in an Asian study sample