Correlation of tartrazine hypersensitivity with specific serum IgD levels.

The clinical diagnosis of hypersensitivity to the food dye tartrazine in 16 subjects correlated with levels of tartrazine-specific IgD antibodies determined by a solid phase radioimmunoassay inhibition test. This is the first study associating hypersensitivity to a low molecular weight chemical with an antibody response of the IgD class. There was little or no correlation between clinical sensitivity and IgE antibodies.