Someone who is allergic to a particular compound (allergen) will often create a subtype of antibodies (immunoglobin E) to the allergen, and histamine levels will increase to produce the immune response. Although testing a particular food for the allergen is relatively straightforward, learning which potential allergen caused the response is much more challenging. Sometimes, a sample of blood can be taken from a patient and exposed to a specific allergen to see if there is a response.
Which might be the best technique to detect specifically for immunoglobin E (IgE) production, and why?
