Nanomaterials for Allergy Diagnosis and Treatment: Advances, Opportunities and Translational Challenges

Allergic disorders, including food allergy, asthma, and atopic dermatitis, affect an estimated 10-30% of the global population, with prevalence continuing to rise in industrialized countries. Allergy is driven by dysregulated type 2 T-helper cells (Th2) and immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibody responses. A range of diagnostic tools is available, but most methods are limited by variable sensitivity and specificity, and the inability to predict clinical reactivity. Although allergen-specific immunotherapy (AIT) remains the only etiological therapeutic method for allergic disorders, conventional AITs are limited by frequent administration, risk of adverse events, suboptimal patient adherence, and inconsistent long-term efficacy. Advances in nanotechnology offer emerging opportunities for improving allergy diagnosis and treatment through enhanced analytical sensitivity, targeted allergen delivery and controlled immune modulation. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the latest research on nanomaterials, including their application in nanomaterials-based diagnostic systems and nano-enabled immunotherapies. We highlight their roles in improving allergen-specific IgE detection, refining functional cellular assays, and enabling next-generation immunotherapies through controlled allergen delivery and immunomodulation. We also critically examine key translational barriers and outline essential future directions required for translating nanotechnologies into clinical practice in allergy medicine.