Contact allergy to acid and neutral fractions of rosins. Sensitization experiments in guinea pigs and patch testing in patients.

The allergenicity of two different types of rosins (gum rosin and tall oil rosin) was compared. The rosins were divided into their neutral and acid fractions. The neutral fraction of tall oil rosin failed to induce contact sensitivity in animals tested according to the Guinea pig maximization test method (GPMT). The neutral fraction of gum rosin as well as the two acid fractions gave significant responses. Relatively fewer dermatitis patients reacted to the neutral fraction compared with reactions to the unfractionated gum rosin when patch tested. Fewer reactions to tall oil rosin than to gum rosin (p less than 0.05) were observed. It is concluded that tall oil rosin is less allergenic than gum rosin, which may be due to the absence of allergens in its neutral fraction.