Treatment of food allergy

The prevalence of food allergy has been increasing globally, and comes with a heavy burden not just economically, but also on quality of life. Although oral immunotherapy (OIT) is effective at inducing desensitization to food allergens, it has several limitations that weaken its success. Limitations include long duration of build-up, especially if used for multiple allergens, and high rate of reported adverse events. Furthermore, OIT may not be effective in all patients. Efforts are underway to identify additional treatment options, either as monotherapy or in combination, to treat food allergy or enhance safety and efficacy of OIT. Biologics such as omalizumab and dupulimab, which already have FDA approval for other atopic conditions have been the most studied, but additional biologics and novel strategies are emerging. In this review we discuss therapeutic strategies including IgE inhibitors, IgE disruptors, IL-4 and IL-13 inhibitors, anti-alarmins, JAK1 and BTK inhibitors, and nanoparticles and the data surrounding their application in food allergy and highlight their potential.