Chinese Society of Allergy Guidelines for Diagnosis and Treatment of Allergic Rhinitis

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a global health problem that causes major illnesses and disabilities worldwide. Epidemiologic studies have demonstrated that the prevalence of AR has increased progressively over the last few decades in more developed countries and currently affects up to 40% of the population worldwide. Likewise, a rising trend of AR has also been observed over the last 2–3 decades in developing countries including China, with the prevalence of AR varying widely in these countries. A survey of self-reported AR over a 6-year period in the general Chinese adult population reported that the standardized prevalence of adult AR increased from 11.1% in 2005 to 17.6% in 2011. An increasing number of original articles and imporclinical trials on the epidemiology, pathophysiologic mechanisms, diagnosis, management and comorbidities of AR in Chinese subjects have been published in international peer-reviewed journals over the past 2 decades, and substantially added to our understanding of this disease as a global problem. Although guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of AR in Chinese subjects have also been published, they have not been translated into English and therefore not generally accessible for reference to non-Chinese speaking international medical communities. Moreover, methods for the diagnosis and treatment of AR in China have not been standardized entirely and some patients are still treated according to regional preferences. Thus, the present guidelines have been developed by the Chinese Society of Allergy to be accessible to both national and international medical communities involved in the management of AR patients. These guidelines have been prepared in line with existing international guidelines to provide evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis and management of AR in China.

Correlation of IL-19 and its receptors with tissue remodeling in chronic rhinosinusitis / 中国病理生理杂志

AIM:To explore the differential expression of interleukin-19 (IL-19) and its receptors (IL-20R1/IL-20R2) in the samples of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) with or without nasal polyps (CRSwNP and CRSsNP), and to investigate the correlation of IL-19 and its receptors with tissue remodeling factors, including matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2, MMP-9 and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP)-1 in CRS.METHODS:The polyps from CRSwNP patients (n=30), the sinus mucosa from CRSsNP patients (n=15) and the inferior turbinal mucosa of nasal septum de-viation patients (n=15) were collected.The expression of IL-19 and its receptors (IL-20R1/IL-20R2) in each group was detected by real-time RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry.The expression of tissue remodeling factors MMP-2, MMP-9 and TIMP-1 in different groups was detected by real-time RT-PCR and ELISA.RESULTS:Increased mRNA and protein expression levels of IL-19, IL-20R1, IL-20R2 and MMP-9 were observed in CRSwNP group compared with CRSsNP and control group (P<0.05), while elevated expression level of TIMP-1 was observed in CRSsNP group compared with CRSwNP and control group (P<0.05).The relative expression of MMP-2 among the 3 groups showed no obvious difference.The expression of IL-19 and its receptors showed significantly positive correlations with MMP-9 in CRSwNP (P<0.05).No significant correlation between IL-19 and/or its receptors with TIMP-1 in CRSwNP group was observed.CONCLUSION:The high expression levels of IL-19, IL-20R1 and IL-20R2 and their positive correlations with MMP-9 in CRSwNP indica-te that IL-19 and its receptors may be involved in the tissue remodeling of chronic rhinosinusitis.

Expression of Bcl-2 in the cochlea in age-related hearing loss mouse model / 中国耳鼻咽喉头颈外科

OBJECTIVE To explore the expression of Bcl-2, on mRNA and protein levels, in the different age of C57BL/6 mice cochleae and the expression localization in the cochleae.METHODS Using ABR to test the hearing level in C57BL/6 mice. Surface preparation of cochlear basil membrane is used to observe the morphology and amout of the outer and inner hair cells in different age of C57BL/6 mice. Fluorescent quantitative real time PCR, immunofluorescence histochemical method and western blot are used to detect the expression of Bcl-2 on the mRNA and protein levels in the C57BL/6 mice cochlea of different age groups ('young group', 'elderly group').RESULTS ABR results showed that the hearing threshold of 'older' C57BL/6 mice is much higher than that in the 'young' mice, and surface preparation of cochlear basil membrane showed the hair cell localized in the cochlear basil turn of 'old' mice arranged in a disorder station and part of hair cells were lost. Also, the spiral ganglion cells arranged sparsely and messily. Fluorescence quantitative real-time PCR results suggest the expression of Bcl-2 on/at the mRNA level of the 'old' mice cochleae decreases significantly, compared to that in the 'young' mice. The results of Immunofluorescence and Western blot suggest the expression of Bcl-2 on/at the protein levels of the 'old' mice cochlea decreased, compared to that in the 'young' mice. Also, the Bcl-2 is located in the cytoplasm, and the expression of Bcl-2 in the inner hair cells seems higher than that in the outer hair cells. CONCLUSION The expression of Bcl-2 significantly deceased in the 'old' C57BL/6 mice cochleae, both on mRNA and protein level, which may be related to the hearing loss and loss of hair cells.