Allergenicity of bony and cartilaginous fish – molecular and immunological properties

Abstract

Allergy to bony fish is common and probably increasing worldwide. The major heat stable pan-fish allergen, parvalbumin (PV), has been identified and characterized for numerous fish species. In contrast, there are very few reports of allergic reactions to cartilaginous fish despite widespread consumption. The molecular basis for this seemingly low clinical cross-reactivity between these two fish groups has not been elucidated. PV consists of two distinct protein lineages, α and β. The α-lineage of this protein is predominant in muscle tissue of cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), while β-PV is abundant in muscle tissue of bony fish (Osteichthyes). The low incidence of allergic reactions to ingested rays and sharks is likely due to the lack of molecular similarity, resulting in reduced immunological cross-reactivity between the two PV lineages. Structurally and physiologically both protein lineages are very similar, however the amino acid homology is very low with 47% to 54%. Furthermore, PV from ancient fish species such as the coelacanth demonstrates 62% sequence homology to leopard shark α-PV and 70% to carp β-PV. This indicates the extent of conservation of the PV isoforms lineages across millennia. This review highlights prevalence data on fish allergy and sensitization to fish, and details the molecular diversity of the two protein lineages of the major fish allergen PV among different fish groups, emphasizing the immunological and clinical differences in allergenicity.

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Cognitive Training for Adults With Bothersome Tinnitus: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Cognitive Training for Adults With Bothersome Tinnitus: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2017 Jan 19;:

Authors: Kallogjeri D, Piccirillo JF, Spitznagel E, Hale S, Nicklaus JE, Hardin FM, Shimony JS, Coalson RS, Schlaggar BL

Abstract
Importance: Individuals with tinnitus have poorer working memory, slower processing speeds and reaction times, and deficiencies in selective attention, all of which interfere with readiness and performance. Brain Fitness Program-Tinnitus (BFP-T) is a cognitive training program specially designed to exploit neuroplasticity for preservation and expansion of cognitive health in adults with tinnitus.
Objective: To evaluate the effect of the BFP-T on tinnitus.
Design, Setting, and Participants: This open-label, intention-to-treat randomized clinical trial prescreened 191 patients with tinnitus and 64 healthy controls (HCs) from June 1, 2012, through October 31, 2013. Participants were 40 adults with bothersome tinnitus for more than 6 months and 20 age-matched HCs. Patients with tinnitus were randomized to a BFP-T or non-BFP-T control group. The BFP-T was completed online, and assessments were completed at Washington University School of Medicine.
Interventions: Participants in the intervention group were required to complete the BFP-T online 1 hour per day 5 days per week for 8 weeks. Tinnitus assessment, neuroimaging, and cognitive testing were completed at baseline and 8 weeks later. The HCs underwent neuroimaging and cognitive assessments.
Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome measure was the change in Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) score. Behavioral measures, neuroimaging, and cognitive tests were performed before and after the intervention.
Results: A total of 40 patients with tinnitus and 20 HCs participated in the study (median [range] age, 56 [35-64] years in the BFP-T group, 52 [24-64] years in the non-BFP-T group, and 50 [30-64] years in the HC group; 13 [65%] in the BFP-T group, 14 [70%] in the non-BFP-T group, and 13 [65%] in the HC group were males; and 16 [80%] in the BFP-T group, 16 [80%] in the non-BFP-T group, and 15 [75%] in the HC group were white). There was a reduction in the THI score in the BFP-T group (median, 7; range, -16 to 64) and non-BFP-T group (median, 11; range, -6 to 26), but this reduction was not significantly different between the 2 groups (median difference, 0; 95% CI, -10 to 8). There was no difference in cognitive test scores and other behavioral measures. There was a significant difference between baseline and follow-up in functional connectivity in cognitive control regions in the BFP-T group but not in HCs or individuals with untreated tinnitus. Of the 20 patients in the BFP-T group, 10 (50%) self-reported improvement attributable to the intervention, and 6 (30%) reported to be much improved in the domains of tinnitus, memory, attention, and concentration.
Conclusions and Relevance: These findings suggest that the computer-based cognitive training program is associated with self-reported changes in attention, memory, and perception of tinnitus. A possible mechanistic explanation for these changes could be neuroplastic changes in key brain systems involved in cognitive control. Cognitive training programs might have a role in the future treatment of patients with tinnitus.
Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT01458821.

PMID: 28114646 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

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JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.

JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.

JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2017 Jan 01;143(1):10

Authors:

PMID: 28114633 [PubMed - in process]

http://ift.tt/2jXy1mu

Highlights.

Highlights.

JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2017 Jan 01;143(1):3

Authors:

PMID: 28114632 [PubMed - in process]

http://ift.tt/2j9kTX8

A Cystic Lesion of the Lower Lip.

A Cystic Lesion of the Lower Lip.

JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2017 Jan 19;:

Authors: De Mol A, Hauben E, Politis C

PMID: 28114608 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

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Two inflammatory phenotypes of nasal polyps and comorbid asthma

Publication date: Available online 23 January 2017
Source:Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology
Author(s): Dawei Wu, Lun Li, Min Zhang, Jianting Wang, Yongxiang Wei
BackgroundNasal polyps and comorbid asthma (NPCA) is a common united airway disease. However, the inflammatory phenotyes of NPCA are not clear.ObjectiveTo identify inflammatory phenotypes of NPCA.MethodsA total of 106 patients diagnosed with NPCA were recruited from rhinologic clinics. A combined method of biopsies from nasal polyps and fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) was used to explore inflammatory phenotyes of NPCA. Patients were evaluated with respect to clinical, functional, and inflammatory parameters. Clinical outcomes after medical treatment were also assessed.ResultsTwo distinct inflammatory phenotypes (eosinophilic [64.15%] and noneosinophilic phenotypes [35.85%]) were identified. Inflammatory patterns of upper and lower airways were consistent in NPCA. Patients with eosinophilic NPCA had a higher nasal polyps recurrence rate than did patients with noneosinophilic NPCA, a more severe asthma phenotype (P < .001), higher exhaled nitric oxide levels (P < .001), higher IgE levels (P < .001), higher Lund-Mackay scores (P < .05), and more blood eosinophilia (P < .001). In addition, eosinophilic NPCA was associated with worse pulmonary function and responded well to an 8-week course of medical treatment based on computed tomographic findings and the ratio of forced expiratory volume in 1 second to forced vital capacity. The total IgE concentration was a marker for eosinophilic NPCA (optimal cutoff, >55.5 kU/L; sensitivity, 86.2%; specificity, 85.4%).ConclusionPatients with NPCA had 2 inflammatory phenotypes with distinct clinical profiles. Total IgE is a marker of eosinophilic NPCA.



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Adult atopic dermatitis and exposure to air pollutants—a nationwide population-based study

Publication date: Available online 23 January 2017
Source:Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology
Author(s): Kuo-Tung Tang, Kai-Chen Ku, Der-Yuan Chen, Ching-Heng Lin, Ben-Jei Tsuang, Yi-Hsing Chen
BackgroundThere is a trend toward an increased worldwide prevalence of allergic diseases. It is speculated that industrialization with resultant air pollution plays a role. However, there are sparse epidemiologic data on the relation between air pollution and atopic dermatitis (AD) in adults.ObjectiveTo investigate the relation between exposure to air pollutants and adult AD in a cross-sectional study based on data from the National Health Insurance Research Database in Taiwan.MethodsWe identified 1,023 adult patients with AD and 4,092 age- and sex-matched controls without allergic diseases in 2011. Using data from 71 Environmental Protection Agency monitoring stations across Taiwan, levels of exposure to air pollutants were determined by the location of a subject's place of residence. Multivariate logistic regression analysis, adjusted for age, sex, levels of urbanization, and family income, was performed.ResultsWe found an association between particulate matter <2.5 μm in diameter or the Pollutant Standards Index (the highest sub-index of the concentrations of 5 main air pollutants after transformation) and the development of adult AD. The adjusted odds ratios were 1.05 (95% confidence interval 1.02–1.08) and 1.02 (95% confidence interval 1.01–1.03), respectively.ConclusionThese results demonstrated that air pollution, represented by particulate matter <2.5 μm in diameter or the Pollutant Standards Index, was modestly associated with the development of AD in adults.



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