Immunoglobulin (Ig) E is the principal Ig involved in immediate hypersensitivities and chronic allergic diseases such as asthma. Helminths are the most potent infectious agents known for their capacity to stimulate IgE production during the course of infection. In rats, the nematode Trichinella spiralis typically elicits a strong parasite-specific IgE response during infection, and this IgE ant...

Prostaglandins E2 (PGE2) has been shown to enhance IgE production by B cells in vitro. The physiological and pathological relevance of this phenomenon and the underlying molecular mechanism, however, remain to be elucidated. B cells from wild type and EP2-deficient mice were compared in culture for their responses to PGE2 in terms of IgE class switching and production. Ovalbumin (OVA)-induced a...

Background: The etiology of urticaria is recognized only in a minority of cases. Allergies to a wide variety of agents have been suspected, as well as hyper reactivity to food additives or drugs. Recently, autoimmune reaction to immunoglobulin E (IgE) and later to high-affinity IgE receptors on mast cells has been reported. The aim of this study was to show elevated serum IgE levels in the pati...

BACKGROUND BCG, a potent inducer of Th1 immune response, has been suggested to suppress Th2 response which is known to mediate IgE-mediated allergic disorders, in particular allergic asthma. Schultz-Dale reaction is known to be a model of IgE-mediated hypersensitivity. This study was done to investigate whether BCG infection suppresses the Schultz-Dale reaction by inhibiting Th2 response and al...

IgE plays a key role in allergic reactions, particularly the early phase response. A humanized monoclonal anti-IgE antibody (omalizumab) that prevents IgE from binding to receptors on mast cells and basophils is undergoing clinical trials in a number of allergic diseases. Following intravenous or subcutaneous administration in humans, omalizumab has a long plasma elimination half-life (1± 4 wee...

Resistance to Schistosoma mansoni infection has been correlated with IgE responses to the adult worm. Molecular targets of this response are gaining interest as markers of immunity and as indicators of allergenic properties. Few protein families contain IgE antigens (allergens) and one of the most highly represented are the tropomyosins. Alternative splicing generates numerous tropomyosin isofo...

A new assay system is described for the enumeration of antigen-specific IgE immunoglobulin-secreting cells (ISC) based on an enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay. Using this technique to monitor the organ distribution of OVA-specific ISC after primary immunization of rats, approximately 12,000 specific IgE ISC were detected at the peak of the response in the draining lymph nodes compared with 11...

Immunoglobulin E (IgE) and its high-affinity receptor (FcεRI) are well-known participants in the allergic response. The interaction of allergens with FcεRI-bound IgE antibodies is an essential step in mast cell/basophil activation and the subsequent release of allergic mediators. It is known that the affinity of the interaction between an IgE antibody and an allergen may differ, raising the que...

This study indicates that hydrocortisone (HC) markedly increases the synthesis of immunoglobulin E (IgE) by interleukin 4 (IL-4)-stimulated human lymphocytes. The effect is glucocorticoid specific and is obtained with low concentrations of HC (0.1-10 microM). In both the early and the late phase of the IL-4-induced response HC exerts its effects which are respectively IL-4 dependent and IL-4 in...

BACKGROUND Induction of allergen-specific IgG(4) antibodies is the most consistent immunological finding in immunotherapy trials. However, quantitative assessments of IgG(4) antibodies have not proven beneficial in evaluating clinical changes during or after immunotherapy. In the current study, we investigated the relationship between clinical outcome and allergen-specific IgG(4) titres or func...