Immunogenicity and Tolerogenicity of a Major House Dust Mite Allergen, <i>Der p</i> l from <i>Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus</i>, in Mice and Rats

Abstract

Primary immunization of different inbred strains of mice with the house dust mite allergen Der p I (from Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus) adsorbed to adjuvant revealed differences in IgE but not IgG responses. Thus, the CBA and C57 Black strains were shown to be high IgE responders in that persistent IgE was induced which lasted for several months. In contrast, the C3H, AKR and Balb/c strains were judged to be poor responders. Subsequent experiments showed that such responses were adjuvant-independent, refractory to irradiation (850 rad) and that they could be adoptively transferred using immune spleen cells in a dose-dependent manner. At sub-optimal doses, adoptively transferred IgE responses were initiated by either intraperitoneal or intranasal challenge of recipients with allergen in the absence of adjuvant. Allergen-specific IgE in rats was also shown to be strain-dependent, with Brown Norway rats, in contrast to Wistar Furth (WF) and Lou/M rats, being the highest responder strain studied. Repeated intranasal administration of soluble allergen induced IgE tolerance in rats but not mice. However, tolerance was restricted to the low IgE responder phenotype strain, WF.

An animal model for allergic penicilliosis induced by the intranasal instillation of viable Penicillium chrysogenum conidia

“…However, preliminary experiments conducted in our laboratory using BALB/c instilled intranasally with viable P chrysogenum conidia only induced airway neutrophilia and no increases in total serum IgE levels (data not shown). This is consistent with experiments conducted by Stewart et al who demonstrated that Der p 1, the major house dust mite antigen, induced an IgE response in C57Bl/6 mice but not in BALB/c mice 21. Long term exposure to 10 4 viable P chrysogenum conidia caused a significant increase in total serum IgE, together with conidia-specific IgE and IgG 1 .…”

Faecally Derived Hydrolytic Enzymes from <i>Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus</i>: Physicochemical Characterisation of Potential Allergens

“…Isoelectric points (pi) of en zymes were determined either by chromatofocusing or by iso electric focusing (IEF). Chromatofocusing was performed at room temperature [26,27] and IEF was performed using a preparative electrophoresis cell (Rotophor; Bio Rad, Richmond, USA) at 0°C according to the manufacturer's instructions. Appropriate frac tions were pooled, dialysed and freeze-dried.…”

Absence of immunoglobulin E synthesis and airway eosinophilia by vaccination with plasmid DNA encoding ProDer p 1

“…The prevalence of anti‐Der p 1 IgE antibodies in dust mite‐allergic patients is higher than 80% [2, 3]. In animal models, Der p 1 was shown to induce specific IgE, pulmonary eosinophilic inflammation and airway hyper‐responsiveness [4–7]. The molecular basis explaining the Der p 1 allergenicity is not fully understood but recent evidence suggests a correlation with its proteolytic activity [8].…”