| MadSci Network: Immunology |
Hello Chris, The answer to your question is... not necessarily. It all depends on which protein of fish you are allergic to and what is the gene of the fish that is inserted in the target food. If the gene encodes for the same protein that you are allergic to, there are good chances that you will be allergic to the other food. If, however, the gene encodes a protein of the fish that you are not allergic to, then you will not develop an allergic reaction. One important thing to remember is that in an immune reaction, all proteins are NOT the same... Some have a high immunogenic potential (they very often trigger an immune reaction) and others have low or no immunogenic potential at all. Most people that become allergic to nuts are allergic to the same protein, as probably do most people that are allergic to fish or seafood. Scientists who tries to genetically modify a type of food will have to make certain that they do not introduce a highly immunogenic protein or that a low immunogenic protein in fish do not become highly immunogenic in the target food. That could cause a person to eat... say a strawberry that express a fish gene and become allergic to fish because they developed an immune reaction to the fish protein. As you can see, a lot of control will have to be implemented over companies that want to create genetically modified food. I do believe that genetically modified food represent the future but it will have to be a really strict business. I don't want to become an unknowing laboratory rat if you see what I mean! I hope this answered your question... Ciao! Mike
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