CD40LG and infection: This finding suggests that while IgG and IgM antibody responses to α-Gal produced by some bacteria of the gut microbiota are beneficial as they protect against infection by pathogens such as malaria parasites and tuberculosis mycobacteria, anti-α-Gal IgE antibodies induced by tick bites break the oral tolerance to food allergens and induce anaphylactic reactions to tick α-Gal-containing salivary proteins [7–15].