Polarization toward Th1-type response in active, but not in inactive, lupus inhibits late allergic rhinitis in lupus-prone female NZB×NZWF(1) mice.

The association of allergic diseases and disease activity in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE, lupus) is controversial. The study investigates lupus activity-related differences in the induction of late allergic rhinitis (LAR) in the female NZB×NZW(B/W)F(1) mouse model for lupus. The LAR, which is induced by ovalbumin, was examined during the preactive (before clinical onset) and active (after clinical onset) phases in mice. Induction of LAR was less severe in mice with active lupus in contrast to clinically healthy lupus mice that developed a more severe allergic rhinitis. Inhibition of the development of LAR may be due to reduced eosinophilia and local interleukin-4 secretion during active autoimmune disease. In addition, systemic interferon-γ, but not IL-4, production increased during the active phase, but not the preactive phase. This suggests that the predominating Th1 lineage commitment in mice with active lupus may be responsible for the inhibition of the allergic Th2 response. The present study may shed some light on the controversy of the prevalence of allergic diseases in SLE patients.

Establishment of tyrosinase sequence database in normally pigmented Indians and Japanese for rapid determination of novel mutations.

BACKGROUND: Many mutations of the tyrosinase gene have been reported in oculocutaneous albinism type I (OCA1) patient. In the future, a greater number of novel mutations will be found as the search for pathological mutations in the tyrosinase genes of OCA patients from various ethnic origins. For rapid determination in future whether an observed mutation is a polymorphism or a novel pathological one, sequence databases of the gene of various ethnic people are needed. OBJECTIVE: We established a sequence database of the tyrosinase gene of Japanese as well as Indian people. METHOD: We collected DNA from 109 Japanese and 103 Indians with normal pigmentation and analyzed their tyrosinase gene using a direct sequencing method. RESULT: The database shows an apparent difference between the two ethnic groups in polymorphisms of the tyrosinase gene namely, Q402 allele, Y192 allele and IV2+24 insT were found in the Indian population, but not in the Japanese. On the other hand, some Japanese had IV2-21 insT but none of the Indians did. The database supports the notion that the tyrosinase gene evolved and extended separately in the two ethnic groups. And the developing database confirmed that the reported mutations causing Indian and Japanese OCA were not among the polymorphisms in the database, which conversely gives genetical proof of the "genuine" pathological mutations. CONCLUSION: Eventually, the sequence database we established will contribute to demonstrating novel mutations of albinism in Indians and Japanese.