Evaluation of the allergenicity of goat milk, cow milk, and their lactosera in a guinea pig model.

The object of this study was to determine the allergenicity of goat milk (GM) and cow milk (CM) and that of their respective lactosera (GML and CML), by in vivo and in vitro assays. Two systemic tests for anaphylaxis were carried out in guinea pigs, the animals being sensitized orally with the 2 types of milk and lactosera. Sera were taken from the orbital sinus of the experimental animals at 0 and 22 d of the experiment to perform the serological study and the passive cutaneous anaphylaxis test. For the latter, the guinea pigs were sensitized passively with antibodies against the 4 antigen solutions. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and Western blot were used to determine the specific antibodies of the isotypes immunoglobulin G1 and immunoglobulin G(Fc) developed against the same 4 antigen solutions. From these anaphylaxis and antibody-production tests, it was concluded that GM is hypoallergenic when compared with CM. The lactosera produced more closely grouped results, with values always below those of the corresponding milk. None of the proteins in the 4 immunizing solutions were identified as being their main allergen. These results show the hypoallergenicity of GM versus CM, and also that both casein and lactoserum proteins may be responsible for allergy in each case. To analyze the possibility of producing an innocuous food for those allergic to milk proteins, it would be of interest to identify the epitope(s) responsible for such allergenicity.