Is Air Pollution Making Our Allergies Worse?

New findings presented at the 249th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS) show that air pollutants may have something to do with the severity of our allergies during the transition from spring to winter.

"Scientists have long suspected that air pollution and climate change are involved in the increasing prevalence of allergies worldwide. But understanding the underlying chemical processes behind this phenomenon has proven elusive," said Ulrich Pöschl, Ph.D., of the Max Planck Institute in Germany, in a news release. "Our research is just a starting point, but it does begin to suggest how chemical modifications in allergenic proteins occur and how they may affect allergenicity."

As it stands, statistics show that about 50 million people in the United States suffer from nasal allergies, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. And those numbers are on the rise.

For the study, researchers explored how allergy-causing substances are altered in the air and can become more severe as air pollutants increase with the strength of certain allergens.

Researchers studied the effects of various levels of ozone and nitrogen dioxide on a major birch pollen allergen known as Bet v 1 in laboratory tests and computer simulations.

The ozone, otherwise known as the main component of smog, oxidizes an amino acid called tyrosine that works from Bet v 1 proteins. Then, it transforms into a motion chain of reactions that involve reactive oxygen intermediates that work to bind proteins together, altering their structures and their potential biological effects. This also occurs while cross-linked proteins become more potent allergens.

Furthermore, the researchers found that nitrogen dioxide, a component of automobile exhaust, alters the polarity and binding capabilities of Bet v1 allergenic proteins. When in conjunction with effects of the ozone, researchers predict that this may enhance the immune response of the body of the particles, particularly in humid, wet and smoggy environments.

"Our research is showing that chemical modifications of allergenic proteins may play an important role in the increasing prevalence of allergies worldwide," Kampf concluded. "With rising levels of these pollutants we will have more of these protein modifications, and in turn, these modifications will affect the allergenic potential of the protein."