Distribution of allergic and blocking activity in human serum proteins fractionated by electrophoresis convection

Immunotherapy in clinical medicine: historical perspective and current status

In humans, the immune system is a complex organ system involving cells and soluble mediators whose function is, essentially, protection. However, disequilibrium in this intricate system leads to disease in itself. To modulate these responses, immunotherapy is now the primary or adjunct treatment of many diseases. In addition, immunologic tests now diagnose several diseases.

100 years of hyposensitization: history of allergen-specific immunotherapy (ASIT)

Hundred years ago, Leonhard Noon and John Freeman published their pioneering works on allergen-specific immunotherapy (ASIT) using grass pollen extracts. To honor their contribution to the development of ASIT as the only causal treatment of IgE-mediated allergies, we review the history of ASIT that started with the anecdotal descriptions of ASIT performed by the ancient king Mithridates (132-63 B.C.) and Jenner's development of a cowpox vaccine. Following Noon's and Freeman's first controlled human trials, ASIT was performed by a large number of modalities and with a myriad of pharmacologic preparations. These developments range from early aqueous pollen extracts and whole bee extracts to chemically modified allergens (allergoids) and various recombinant allergens. In addition to allergen-specific immunotherapy, non-specific immune response modifiers have been used in the past or are in the developmental stage. Also, currently many innovative experimental approaches of ASIT are studied in animal models and human in vitro systems and will hopefully further broaden the range of allergies that can be treated by ASIT, with enhanced efficacy and further reduced side-effects.

Properties of guinea pig 7S antibodies. II. Identification of antibodies involved in passive cutaneous and systemic anaphylaxis

Guinea pig 7Sγ₁ antibodies were demonstrated to mediate passive systemic or cutaneous anaphylaxis; guinea pig 7Sγ₂ antibodies were unable to mediate these reactions. Gamma-2 antibodies specifically inhibited passive cutaneous anaphylactic reactions provoked by gamma-1 antibodies by competing for antigen. However, gamma-2 antibodies were unable to inhibit passive cutaneous sensitization of guinea pigs by a heterologous antibody system. Guinea pig 7Sγ₂ antibodies appear to lack receptors for fixation to guinea pig tissues and do not compete with sensitizing antibody for receptor sites.

Reaginic activity associated with IgG immunoglobulin

Five human sera with reaginic activity to a number of allergens were fractionated using anion exchange chromatography. In each serum, fractions which contained detectable IgG and no detectable IgA had capacity to fix to skin and subsequently elicit a P-K reaction. Four of these sera had reaginic activity about equally distributed between fractions containing only IgG and fractions containing mixtures of IgG and IgA. A fifth serum contained reaginic activity to crystalline bovine serum albumin (BSA) and most of the activity was associated with the fraction which contained only IgG. This serum was extensively studied using a variety of techniques and it was confirmed that most of the reagin to BSA in this serum was in those fractions containing only IgG. Since reaginic activity can no longer be considered a unique property of IgA the implications of finding antibody with reaginic qualities in immunoglobulins other than IgA are discussed.

Immunochemical studies of antitoxin produced in normal and allergic individuals hyperimmunized with diphtheria toxoid. IV. Differences between human precipitating and non-precipitating skin-sensitizing diphtheria antitoxin as shown by electrophoresis

Electrophoresis on a starch-supporting medium was used to fractionate sera containing human diphtheria antitoxin of the following varieties (a) precipitating antitoxin, (b) non-precipitating skin-sensitizing antitoxin, and (c) mixtures containing precipitating and skin-sensitizing antitoxins. Aliquots of the protein fractions thus separated were tested for activity using the rabbit toxin neutralization test, precipitin techniques, and passive transfer tests in human skin. Non-precipitating, skin-sensitizing diphtheria antitoxin migrated largely as a fast moving gamma (gamma(1)) globulin. Passive transfer studies of isolated antitoxic fractions showed that they were as potent as whole serum in the ability to cause immediate wheal reactions. These fractions were not precipitable using appropriate quantities of purified toxoid. Precipitating diphtheria antitoxin migrated largely as a slow moving gamma (gamma(2)) globulin. Isolated antitoxic fractions of appropriate strength obtained from representative sera were precipitable by toxin and were unable to cause immediate wheal reactions upon toxoid challenge in human recipients. Mixtures of skin-sensitizing and precipitating antitoxins were separable by the technique of starch electrophoresis. The individual components removed from mixtures by this method retained the properties by which they could be characterized in whole serum.