BACKGROUND The majority of allergic asthmatic patients are sensitised to several aeroallergens. Discrimination of the clinically relevant allergen is essential for the correct use of immunotherapy. OBJECTIVE To investigate nasal challenge and its role in screening clinically relevant allergens in asthmatic children. METHODS Aeroallergen nasal challenge was performed in five different groups...

RATIONALE Newly characterized type 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) display potent type 2 effector functionality; however, their contribution to allergic airways inflammation and asthma is poorly understood. Mucosal biopsy used to characterize the airway mucosa is invasive, poorly tolerated, and does not allow for sequential sampling. OBJECTIVES To assess the role of ILC2s during nasal allerge...

OBJECTIVE To determine effects of probiotic consumption on clinical and immunological parameters of seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR) in an out-of-season single nasal allergen challenge. METHODS In a study registered at ClinicalTrials.Gov (NCT01123252), a 16-week dietary intervention was undertaken in 60 patients with allergic rhinitis (>16 years old). Using a double-blinded, placebo-controlle...

BACKGROUND Allergen Immunotherapy is a promising treatment of allergy. Seven patients with rhinoconjunctivitis to grass allergen were treated with intralymphatic immunotherapy (ILIT) to explore whether this treatment could be performed. Effect of treatment was assessed as change in symptom medication score, response in skin prick test and nasal allergen provocation. ILIT deposits allergen in an...

Methods 20 Allergic Rhinitis (AR) participants underwent NAC to determine the concentration at which a Total Nasal Symptom Score (TNSS) of 10/12 OR a Peak Nasal Inspiratory Flow (PNIF) reduction of 50 % was achieved. 4-fold increases in allergen concentration were administered every 15 minutes until qualification criteria were met. The Qualifying Allergen Concentration (QAC) reached was used as...

Two studies were undertaken to assess the efficacy and safety of three thixotropic nasal sprays (IQM11, IQM12, IQM13) on seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR). The three nasal sprays differ only with respect to the emulsifying agent used in the formulation. In the prospective, randomized, cross-over pilot study, 16 patients with a history of SAR received 2 x 0.14 ml IQM11 per nostril or no treatment...

Allergic rhinitis is a common disorder and involves the reaction to environmental allergens with resultant nasal and eye symptoms. The pathophysiologic mechanisms of the eye symptoms in allergic conjunctivitis include a direct effect on the eye by deposited allergen and indirect effects related to the deposition of allergen in the nasal mucosa. One of these proposed mechanisms is the existence ...

4 LIST OF ORIGINAL PAPERS 5 ABBREVIATIONS 8 INTRODUCTION 9 AIR POLLUTANTS 9 NO2 and its chemical properties 10 Pulmonary deposition of NO2 11 Health effects of air pollutants 11 Epidemiologic studies of health effects of NO2 12 Controlled human exposure studies in healthy subjects 12 Controlled human exposure studies in asthmatics 13 ALLERGIC AIRWAY DISEASE 14 Rhinitis and asthma 14 Combined ai...

: Interleukin (IL)-9 is a pleiotropic T helper 2-type cytokine that has been shown to be up-regulated in allergic airway disease, including asthma. IL-9 has been demonstrated to be a potent stimulus for the production and secretion of mucus from airway epithelial cells via induction of a calcium-activated chloride channel, hCLCA1. The objective of this study was to investigate the expression of...

To investigate the temporal relationships of mediator release and physiological changes during the early response to allergen, we challenged allergic individuals intranasally with antigen and followed their responses. This was done by using small filter paper disks to challenge one nostril and collect secretions from both the challenged and the contralateral nostril, thus enabling us to evaluat...