If you're one of the over 100 million Americans who suffer from allergies, autumn can prove just as miserable as spring, with decaying leaves and ragweed pollen leading to itchy eyes and runny noses. While taking antihistamines can provide temporary relief, Michigan State University researcher Maksymilian Chruszcz, the Walter F. Patenge Chair in the MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine and professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, is working toward better, long-lasting solutions.
Chruszcz, who joined MSU in 2023 as part of its Applied Immunology Center for Education and Research is a new co-chair of the World Health Organization/International Union of Immunological Societies’ Allergen Nomenclature Sub-Committee. In this role, he’s helping identify newly discovered allergens from across the globe and leveraging his own expertise as a scientist who studies the underlying causes of allergies, not just their uncomfortable – and potentially dangerous – symptoms.
Here, Chruszcz, shares some of the science behind allergies, how his research is leading to better precision medicine and what exactly goes into defining a new allergen.
How did you originally come to study allergies?
My initial interest was very personal, as my oldest daughter has a milk allergy. When she was being tested for her condition, I discovered there was quite a lot that's not very well known about allergies. I knew that if we could improve our scientific understanding, we could help physicians better determine what's really happening in our bodies when we’re allergic.
Why do we experience allergies in the first place?
Allergies are a case of mistaken identity. Sometimes when our bodies are exposed to a usually harmless molecule such as pollen or a particular food, the immune system treats it as a threat. This leads to the creation of powerful defensive antibodies called immunoglobin E, or IgE, which then bind to that allergen.
This process is known as sensitization and it means the next time those IgE antibodies encounter a similar molecule, they help release inflammatory chemicals to fight off a perceived danger. These chemicals are what cause an allergic reaction.
What makes your team’s approach unique?
Our work is very osteopathic. It focuses on the person, not just the disease. We like to understand what is happening at multiple levels when someone is impacted by allergies – what's happening between atoms and molecules, within cells, inside our immune system and across the body as a whole.
To find out why just a few molecules provoke allergic reactions and only in certain people, we study allergens as proteins. These are molecules with highly specific shapes, sizes and chemical characteristics. Using an approach called X-ray crystallography, we’re able to discover very detailed interactions between these molecules, such as how an antibody is binding to an allergen.
How is this work leading to better allergy diagnostics?
If you’re allergic to peanuts, your immune system is actually being triggered by just a handful of molecules. Because we’re studying these precise interactions, we’re able to tell someone they’re not just allergic to peanuts, but what two or three proteins are causing their condition. Going further, we can even find out what fragments of an allergen are responsible for triggering that allergic reaction.
Characterizing these allergen proteins helps us get a more accurate picture of allergies on a case-by-case basis. Ultimately, this means better testing and more personalized treatment for patients. In principle, we’re able to learn about someone’s precise antibody-allergen interactions with just a small blood sample, rather than a prolonged series of skin prick tests.
How does your research improve allergy care for patients?
We’re currently working to develop allergens with reduced IgE binding, which are better known as hypoallergens. When someone’s treated with hypoallergens, they don’t experience a dangerous reaction such as anaphylaxis, and their immune system starts producing other, less aggressive antibodies that bind before IgE do. Through these treatments, we can help someone build a tolerance to a particular allergen over time with less serious side effects.
You were recently named co-chair of the World Health Organization and International Union of Immunological Societies Allergen Nomenclature Sub-Committee. What do you do in this new role?
When a researcher anywhere in the world claims to have discovered a new allergen, they’ll submit an application to this sub-committee. This is a request to have the allergen officially registered and assigned a highly specific name. As co-chair, I review the findings that researchers share and if it’s sufficient, we’ll add that allergen to our database so the global allergy science community is aware.
This naming process is incredibly important. Allergy science is developing very quickly and our committee is helping scientists across the globe align as they encounter and study these new molecules.
How does your new role elevate MSU in the field of allergy science?
If we think of the future of allergy research, people are constantly being exposed to unknown molecules, like new fruits and vegetables in our grocery stores, invasive plant species in our ecosystems, or even exotic pets in our homes.
The process of discovering and registering these new allergens benefits everyone, as it advances the science behind better testing and treatment. Right now, MSU is becoming very well known in the world of allergy science. Very few other institutions have labs working on these topics, and in my new role as co-chair, I see our university as directly helping people who are suffering from allergies across the globe.
