Allergy to hematophagous arthropod bites

Abstract

Allergies to hematophagous arthropod bites are inflammatory reactivity to arthropod salivary components. They vary in intensity and quality dependent upon the arthropod specie and the individual immune response to specific proteins of the insect’s saliva. Individuals who were not previously exposed show mild localized reactions not beyond those expected by pharmacological substances present in arthropods’ saliva. Allergic reactions are immunological in their nature and the diversity derived from hypersensitivity reactions with different levels of participation of the immune system components. Some are mainly derived from a humoral immune response, and others are based predominantly on T-lymphocytemediated hypersensitivities. The majority of these undesired biological answers are self-limited, and few may cause a systemic reaction. This article intends to discuss the immunological ingredients of this evolutionary interaction.