It’s known as the lone star tick because of the blotch of white that appears on the back of the female’s body. One aspect of its epidemiology is becoming clear, though: the allergy isn’t only caused by the lone star tick. Alpha-gal allergy was not just an odd occurrence in one part of the US. But alpha-gal allergy defies some of the bedrock tenets of immunology. Alpha-gal is a sugar; alpha-gal patients tolerate meat for years before their reactions begin; and alpha-gal reactions take hours to occur.

Source: The Guardian December 11, 2018 06:01 UTC