Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Laboratory

Novel gene-based diagnostic techniques, which greatly increase the sensitivity, speed and reliability of diagnosis of the disease-causing allergens, including grasses are being developed for easier monitoring of the onset and development of allergies.
An important treatment for serve allergic conditions is vaccination, using pollen allergen-based vaccines. Current immunotherapy is performed by injection of high dosages of crude pollen extracts, but such treatments can lead to life-threatening anaphylactic side reactions.

Our group has developed novel and safer vaccines by modifying pollen allergens, which shows promise for tailoring vaccines to individual patients. An alternative means of delivering vaccines by incorporating and over-expressing modified allergens as vaccines in fruits, seeds and other edible plants is also being investigated.