No abstract

Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that Parietaria is more important than Olea and Gramineae as a risk for developing non-specific bronchial hyperresponsiveness. On the whole, present observations provide further evidence that there is an interrelationship of allergen kind, total serum IgE, eosinophil and bronchial hyperresponsiveness suggesting that they may play a role in the development of bronchial asthma in rhinitis patients.

No abstract

It is well known that ageing is associated with various alterations of the lymphoid cell functions. Although both B and T cell are affected, the last appear to be more sensitive to ageing process. During the past years, to gain insight into thé mechanism(s) of this impairment, effort has been centered on the helper T cells specifically engaged in the production of interleukin-2 (IL-2) because of the pivotal role played by this cytokine in the activation of several immune functions. The results have demonstrated that the ability to produce IL-2 declines with age. In this paper we report the results of a study performed to determine the influence of age on the capacity to produce gamma-interferon (gamma-IFN), interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interleukin-6 (IL-6). Mononuclear cells from young and old subjects were assessed for cytokine producing capacity in response to phytohaemagglutinin stimulation. A significant decrease of gamma-IFN production by old subjects has been observed. No significant difference was instead observed between the old subjects and the young ones as regards IL-4 and IL-6 production. We suggest that this imbalanced cytokine production may well account for the pattern of immune response which may be observed in elderly, i.e. a normal or increased humoral response in face of a low T cell immune responsiveness.

This study demonstrates that salmeterol affords a significant improvement in asthma control during the pollen season, measured by both subjective and objective parameters, compared with salbutamol. This greater efficacy may be related to inhibition of eosinophil degranulation during the pollen season.