Previous Article in Journal
Multiple Nut Allergies and Anaphylaxis Risk in Children: A Narrative Review
 
 
Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
Journals
Allergies
Volume 5
Issue 4
10.3390/allergies5040044
allergies-logo
Submit to this Journal Review for this Journal Propose a Special Issue
► Article Menu

Article Menu

share Share announcement Help format_quote Cite question_answer Discuss in SciProfiles
first_page
settings
Order Article Reprints
Font Type:
Arial Georgia Verdana
Font Size:
Aa Aa Aa
Line Spacing:
Column Width:
Background:
This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Review

Shellfish Allergy Immunotherapy: Are We Moving Forward?

by
Lucio H. T. Fung
1,
Ho Lam Yeung
2,
Chun Wai Lim
2,
Shan Jiang
1,
Nicki Y. H. Leung
1,
Patrick S. C. Leung
3,
Ting Fan Leung
1,4 and
Christine Y. Y. Wai
1,4,*
1
Department of Paediatrics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
2
Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
3
Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Clinical Immunology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA
4
Hong Kong Hub of Paediatric Excellence, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Allergies 2025, 5(4), 44; https://doi.org/10.3390/allergies5040044
Submission received: 14 October 2025 / Revised: 21 November 2025 / Accepted: 10 December 2025 / Published: 12 December 2025
(This article belongs to the Section Food Allergy)
Versions Notes

Abstract

Shellfish allergy is among the most common food allergies (FAs) worldwide and represents a severe immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated FA with tropomyosin functioning as the predominant pan-allergen. Current management of shellfish allergies is strictly palliative with allergen avoidance, underscoring the critical need for disease-modifying therapies. While conventional allergen-specific immunotherapy (AIT) approaches, namely oral and sublingual immunotherapies, demonstrate capacity for desensitization, more clinical applications are needed in the potential safety concerns and prolonged treatment durations. Innovative treatments, such as the design of modified shellfish allergens, DNA vaccine technologies, and nanoparticle-based delivery platforms such as virus-like particles (VLP), show efficacy and potential in inducing protective antibodies while promoting antigen-specific immune tolerance with reduced allergenic risks. These innovative approaches hint at a promising pathway in achieving safe, effective, and long-lasting clinical tolerance for shellfish allergy. This review describes the current perspectives on allergen immunotherapy regarding shellfish allergy and analyzes emerging therapeutic strategies poised to overcome these limitations.
Keywords: hypoallergen; DNA vaccine; nanoparticle; oral immunotherapy; sublingual immunotherapy hypoallergen; DNA vaccine; nanoparticle; oral immunotherapy; sublingual immunotherapy

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Fung, L.H.T.; Yeung, H.L.; Lim, C.W.; Jiang, S.; Leung, N.Y.H.; Leung, P.S.C.; Leung, T.F.; Wai, C.Y.Y. Shellfish Allergy Immunotherapy: Are We Moving Forward? Allergies 2025, 5, 44. https://doi.org/10.3390/allergies5040044

AMA Style

Fung LHT, Yeung HL, Lim CW, Jiang S, Leung NYH, Leung PSC, Leung TF, Wai CYY. Shellfish Allergy Immunotherapy: Are We Moving Forward? Allergies. 2025; 5(4):44. https://doi.org/10.3390/allergies5040044

Chicago/Turabian Style

Fung, Lucio H. T., Ho Lam Yeung, Chun Wai Lim, Shan Jiang, Nicki Y. H. Leung, Patrick S. C. Leung, Ting Fan Leung, and Christine Y. Y. Wai. 2025. "Shellfish Allergy Immunotherapy: Are We Moving Forward?" Allergies 5, no. 4: 44. https://doi.org/10.3390/allergies5040044

APA Style

Fung, L. H. T., Yeung, H. L., Lim, C. W., Jiang, S., Leung, N. Y. H., Leung, P. S. C., Leung, T. F., & Wai, C. Y. Y. (2025). Shellfish Allergy Immunotherapy: Are We Moving Forward? Allergies, 5(4), 44. https://doi.org/10.3390/allergies5040044

Article Metrics

Back to TopTop