BACKGROUND Our laboratory has demonstrated previously that human tonsillar B lymphocytes express IL-13 mRNA OBJECTIVE: We sought to investigate IL-13 production by human B cells and the association between B cell-derived IL-13 and IgE secretion. METHODS Human B lymphocytes were isolated from tonsils and purified by means of rosetting with sheep RBCs or positive or negative selection with magn...

Background: Nasal polyps, a common clinical problem, are characterized by eosinophilic and mast cell inflammation.  The role of allergy and IgE in pathogenesis of nasal polyps is still unclear.  IgE receptors are important components of the immunological pathway in allergic and inflammatory diseases. Objective: To determine if the low affinity IgE receptor (CD23) is presented on nasal polyp tis...

Methods Monoclonal human IgE antibodies specific for the major birch pollen allergen Bet v 1 and for the major grass pollen allergen Phl p 5 and the corresponding allergens as well as a hybrid protein consisting of the Bet v 1 and Phl p 5 allergens were expressed. Using circular dichroism spectroscopy we compared the fold of the hybrid protein with that of the mixture of the two allergens. Rat ...

Methods bGST was expressed in Escherichia coli, purified and characterized by mass spectrometry. BALB/c mice were immunized with bGST or Bet v 1. Antibody and T cell responses were assessed. 217 sera from birch pollen-allergic patients were tested for IgE-reactivity to bGST by ELISA. The allergenicity of bGST was evaluated with IgE-loaded rat basophil leukaemia cells (RBL) expressing the a-chai...

Stimulation of human peripheral B cells via the CD40 receptor and IL-4R together lead to IgE synthesis and secretion, but the intracellular signaling mechanisms by which these signals lead to IgE production are unclear. Roles for the transcription factor NF-kappa B and IL-6 have been postulated in the induction of IgE synthesis by IL-4/CD40. We found that neither anti-CD40 Ab nor IL-4 alone was...

BACKGROUND IgE antibodies play a paramount role in the pathogenesis of various intestinal disorders. To gain insights in IgE-mediated pathophysiology of the gut, we investigated the expression of the high affinity IgE receptor Fc epsilonRI in human intestinal epithelium. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Fc epsilonRI alpha-chain, as detected by immunohistochemistry, was positive in epithelial ce...

Biotin is a water-soluble B complex vitamin and coenzyme of five types carboxylase plays crucial roles in fatty acid, glucose, amino acid metabolism. Nutritional biotin deficiency defective enzymes essential for metabolism cause inflammatory diseases such as eczema-like dermatitis Crohn’s disease; however, little known about the pathophysiological biotin. This study investigated relationship be...

BACKGROUND Peanut allergy is characterized by increased levels of peanut-specific IgE in the serum of most patients. Thus, the most logical therapy would be to inhibit the IgE production by committed B-cells. This study aims to investigate the unreported anti-IgE effects of Chinese herbal extracts of Rubia cordifolia (Qiancao) and Dianthus superbus (Qumai). METHODS Seventy herbal extracts wer...

BACKGROUND In a mouse model of viral induced atopic disease, expression of FcεRI on dendritic cells is critical. While adult human conventional (cDC) and plasmacytoid (pDC) dendritic cells have been shown to express FcεRI, it is not known if this receptor is expressed in childhood and how its expression is governed by IgE. METHODS Following informed consent of subjects (n = 27, aged 12-188 mo...

Omalizumab is a humanized anti-IgE antibody that inhibits the binding of IgE to its receptors on mast cells and basophils, thus blocking the IgE-mediated release of inflammatory mediators from these cells. Omalizumab binds to the Fc domains of IgE in proximity to the binding site of the high-affinity IgE receptor FcℇRI, but the epitope and the mechanisms and conformations governing the recognit...