Pilot Study To Compare Nasal Allergen Challenge With Environmental Chamber Challenges (CATEEC) Completes Enrollment

The ITN completed enrollment today for the CATEEC study, a 24-participant pilot to compare allergy assessments using two model exposure systems: Environmental exposure chamber (EEC) and nasal allergen challenge (NAC). The pilot is being conducted at Inflamax Research, Inc. in Ontario, Canada and led by Drs. Stephen Durham (Imperial College London) and Piyush Patel (Inflamax Research, Inc.). The CATEEC pilot will directly compare clinical symptom scores and immunologic biomarkers using these two challenge techniques to assess their utility and interchangeability as allergy evaluation tools for future clinical trials.

Nasal allergen challenges assess clinical outcomes and immune responses by delivering allergen directly to the nose. Nasal challenges are advantageous in that they can be replicated across multiple sites and enable controlled allergen doses, however they do not necessarily replicate natural ambient exposure. An alternative challenge method is via environmental exposure chambers, which are enclosed spaces that control temperature, air flow and humidity and provide diffuse allergen exposure, more closely simulating natural circumstances.

CATEEC will randomize 24 cat-allergic adults to receive either nasal allergen challenge followed by environmental exposure chamber challenge (with a washout period in between), or environmental exposure chamber challenge followed by nasal allergen challenge. The study will compare clinical and immunologic responses within each individual, and results are expected in the fall of 2016.