Practitioner's Corner
J Investig Allergol Clin Immunol 2019; Vol. 29(2): 132-167 © 2019 Esmon Publicidad
Salmon Roe as an Emerging Allergen in Western
Countries
Cosme J
1
, Spínola-Santos A
1
, Bartolomé B
2
, Pastor-Vargas C
3
,
Branco-Ferreira M
1,4
, Pereira-Santos MC
4,5
, Pereira-Barbosa M
1,4
1
Serviço de Imunoalergologia, Hospital de Santa Maria, Centro
Hospitalar Lisboa Norte, Lisboa, Portugal
2
R&D Department, Roxall, Bilbao, Spain
3
Department of Immunology, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria
Hospital, Universitario Fundación Jiménez Díaz. (IIS-FJD,
UAM), Madrid, Spain. RETIC ARADyAL, Instituto de Salud
Carlos III, Spain
4
Clínica Universitária de Imunoalergologia, Faculdade de
Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
5
Laboratório de Imunologia Clínica, Instituto de Medicina
Molecular, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa,
Lisboa, Portugal
J Investig Allergol Clin Immunol 2019; Vol. 29(2): 139-141
doi: 10.18176/jiaci.0347
Key words: Anaphylaxis. Food allergy. Immunoblotting. Lipovitellin.
Salmon roe.
Palabras clave: Anafilaxia. Alergia alimentaria. Immunoblotting.
Lipovitellin. Huevas de salmón.
Salmon roe, which is also known as salmon caviar, red
caviar, or ikura and is frequently consumed in countries such
as Japan or Russia, is a delicacy commonly served in sushi-
based meals [1,2]. Allergic reactions to salmon roe have
been reported in Japan [3,4], and a few cases were recently
described in western countries (3 cases in France [5], 2 cases
in the USA [2,6]). Nevertheless, studies on the allergenicity
of salmon roe are rare [7].
We report the frst case of salmon roe anaphylaxis in a
young adult in Portugal. A 26-year-old man with a history of
mild controlled persistent asthma and persistent, moderate-
severe allergic rhinitis who was sensitized to house dust mites
was admitted to our emergency department complaining
of dyspnea, rhinorrhea, ocular pruritus, epigastric pain,
and nausea. The symptoms began a few minutes after
the ingestion of a sushi meal comprising rice, salmon,
salmon roe, wasabi, soy, and ginger and were treated with
intramuscular epinephrine, intravenous corticosteroids, and
antihistamines. Uvular edema persisted in the emergency
department. The patient denied having eaten other foods,
taken any drugs (including nonsteroidal anti-infammatory
drugs), being infected, or having recently exercised. Skin
prick tests with commercial food extracts were negative for
salmon and other fsh, shellfsh, soy, rice, total egg, egg white,
egg yolk, ovalbumin, and ovomucoid. Skin prick-prick tests
were positive for chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) roe
(17×10 mm) and negative for egg (white and yolk), ginger,
salmon, fying fsh roe (tobiko), sturgeon roe (caviar), and
black scabbard fsh roe. Specifc IgE (sIgE) was 0.28 kU
A
/L
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Canonica GW. A Critical Evaluation of Anti-IL-13 and Anti-
IL-4 Strategies in Severe Asthma. Int Arch Allergy Immunol.
2016;170:122-31.
8. Sastre J, Dávila I. Dupilumab: A New Paradigm for the
Treatment of Allergic Diseases. J Invest Allergol Clin Immunol.
2018;28:139-50.
9. Kim H, Ellis AK, Fischer D, Noseworthy M, Olivenstein R,
Chapman KR, et al. Asthma biomarkers in the age of biologics.
Allergy Asthma Clin Immunol. 2017;17:13-48.
10. Phillips-Angles E, Barranco P, Lluch-Bernal M, Dominguez-
Ortega J, López-Carrasco V, Quirce S. Aspirin tolerance
in patients with nonsteroidal anti-infammatory drug-
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Manuscript received August 30, 2018; accepted for publication
October 21, 2019.
Marta Sánchez-Jareño
Allergy Department, Hospital Universitario La Paz
E-mail: martasanchezjare@gmail.com
139