Hymenopteran-specific TRPA channel from the Texas leaf cutter ant (Atta texana) is heat and cold activated and expression correlates with environmental temperature.

Leaf cutting ants of the genus Atta cultivate fungal gardens, carefully modifying environmental conditions to maintain optimal temperature for fungal growth. Antennal nerves from Atta are highly temperature sensitive, but the underlying molecular sensor is unknown. Here, we utilize Atta texana (Texas leaf cutter ant) to investigate the molecular basis of ant temperature sensation and how it might have evolved as the range expanded northeast across Texas from ancestral populations in Mexico. We focus on transient receptor potential (TRP) channel genes, the best characterized temperature sensor proteins in animals. Atta texana antennae express 6 of 13 Hymenopteran TRP channel genes and sequences are under a mix of relaxed and intensified selection. In a behavioral assay, we find A. texana workers prefer 24 °C (range 21-26 °C) for fungal growth. There was no evidence of regulatory evolution across a temperature transect in Texas, but instead Hymenoptera-specific TRPA (HsTRPA) expression highly correlated with ambient temperature. When expressed in vitro, HsTRPA from A. texana is temperature activated with Q10 values exceeding 100 on initial exposure to temperatures above 33 °C. Surprisingly, HsTRPA also appears to be activated by cooling, and therefore to our knowledge, the first non-TRPA1 ortholog to be described with dual heat/cold activation and the first in any invertebrate.

Using Sensor Data to Identify Factors Affecting Internal Air Quality within 279 Lower Income Households in Cornwall, South West of England.

(1) Background: Poor air quality affects health and causes premature death and disease. Outdoor air quality has received significant attention, but there has been less focus on indoor air quality and what drives levels of diverse pollutants in the home, such as particulate matter, and the impact this has on health; (2) Methods: This study conducts analysis of cross-sectional data from the Smartline project. Analyses of data from 279 social housing properties with indoor sensor data were used to assess multiple factors that could impact levels of particulate matter. T-Tests and Anova tests were used to explore associations between elevated PM2.5 and building, household and smoking and vaping characteristics. Binary logistic regression was used to test the association between elevated particulate matter and self-reported health; (3) Results: Of the multiple potential drivers of the particulate matter investigated, smoking and vaping were significantly associated with mean PM2.5. Following multivariate analysis, only smoking remained significantly associated with higher mean concentrations. Properties in which <15 cigarettes/day were smoked were predicted to have PM2.5 concentrations 9.06 µg/m3 higher (95% CI 6.4, 12.82, p ≤ 0.001) than those in which residents were non-smokers and 11.82 µg/m3 higher (95% CI 7.67, 18.19, p ≤ 0.001) where >15 cigarettes were smoked; (4) Conclusions: A total of 25% of social housing properties in this study experienced levels of indoor PM greater than WHO guideline levels for ambient air pollution. Although there are many factors that impact air quality, in this study the main driver was smoking. This highlights the importance of targeting smoking in indoor environments in future smoking cessation and control policy and practice and of understanding how pollutants interact in the home environment. There is also a need for further research into the impact on indoor air quality of vaping, particularly due to the rise in use and uncertainty of its long-term impact.

Electron-Beam Induced Emergence of Mesoscopic Ordering in Layered MnPS3.

Ordered mesoscale structures in 2D materials induced by small misorientations have allowed for a wide variety of electronic, ferroelectric, and quantum phenomena to be explored. Until now, the only mechanism to induce this periodic ordering was via mechanical rotations between the layers, with the periodicity of the resulting moiré pattern being directly related to twist angle. Here we report a fundamentally distinct mechanism for emergence of mesoscopic periodic patterns in multilayer sulfur-containing metal phosphorus trichalcogenide, MnPS3, induced by the electron beam. The formation under the beam of periodic hexagonal patterns with several characteristic length scales, nucleation and transitions between the phases, and local dynamics are demonstrated. The associated mechanisms are attributed to the relative contraction of the layers caused by beam-induced sulfur vacancy formation with subsequent ordering and lattice parameter change. As a result, the plasmonic response of the system is locally altered, suggesting an element of control over plasmon resonances by electron beam patterning. We pose that harnessing this phenomenon provides both insight into fundamental physics of quantum materials and enables device applications by enabling controlled periodic potentials on the atomic scale.

Wellbeing and Social Network Characteristics in Rural Communities: Findings from a Cohort in Social Housing in Cornwall, United Kingdom.

The mental wellbeing of those living in resource poor and rural localities is a public health priority. Despite evidence of a link between social networks and mental wellbeing, little is known about this relationship in the context of rural and resource poor environments. The current study uses novel social network methodology to investigate the extent to which social network size and composition is related to mental wellbeing in a social housing community in rural England. Data come from 88 individuals living in social housing in Cornwall. These participants are part of a larger study of 329 social housing households surveyed in 2017 and 2018. Mental wellbeing was measured by the Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWBS). A series of multivariable linear regression models were used to test associations between social network characteristics and mental wellbeing. Social network size was significantly associated with the SWEMWBS (b = 0.39, p < 0.01), such that individuals with larger networks reported better mental wellbeing, but after controlling for community social cohesion, this effect dissipated. Neither gender composition or talking with network members about health and wellbeing were significantly associated with the SWEMWBS. Findings suggest that both the quantity of social connections and perceptions of community cohesion are moderately associated with mental wellbeing in rural and resource poor localities. As such, efforts to improve mental wellbeing would benefit from targeting multiple aspects of social relationships, rather than focusing solely on increasing the size of individuals' social networks.

GroundsWell: Community-engaged and data-informed systems transformation of Urban Green and Blue Space for population health - a new initiative.

Natural environments, such as parks, woodlands and lakes, have positive impacts on health and wellbeing. Urban Green and Blue Spaces (UGBS), and the activities that take place in them, can significantly influence the health outcomes of all communities, and reduce health inequalities. Improving access and quality of UGBS needs understanding of the range of systems (e.g. planning, transport, environment, community) in which UGBS are located. UGBS offers an ideal exemplar for testing systems innovations as it reflects place-based and whole society processes , with potential to reduce non-communicable disease (NCD) risk and associated social inequalities in health. UGBS can impact multiple behavioural and environmental aetiological pathways. However, the systems which desire, design, develop, and deliver UGBS are fragmented and siloed, with ineffective mechanisms for data generation, knowledge exchange and mobilisation. Further, UGBS need to be co-designed with and by those whose health could benefit most from them, so they are appropriate, accessible, valued and used well. This paper describes a major new prevention research programme and partnership, GroundsWell, which aims to transform UGBS-related systems by improving how we plan, design, evaluate and manage UGBS so that it benefits all communities, especially those who are in poorest health. We use a broad definition of health to include physical, mental, social wellbeing and quality of life. Our objectives are to transform systems so that UGBS are planned, developed, implemented, maintained and evaluated with our communities and data systems to enhance health and reduce inequalities. GroundsWell will use interdisciplinary, problem-solving approaches to accelerate and optimise community collaborations among citizens, users, implementers, policymakers and researchers to impact research, policy, practice and active citizenship. GroundsWell will be shaped and developed in three pioneer cities (Belfast, Edinburgh, Liverpool) and their regional contexts, with embedded translational mechanisms to ensure that outputs and impact have UK-wide and international application.

Changes in Domestic Energy and Water Usage during the UK COVID-19 Lockdown Using High-Resolution Temporal Data.

In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, the UK Government provided public health advice to stay at home from 16 March 2020, followed by instruction to stay at home (full lockdown) from 24 March 2020. We use data with high temporal resolution from utility sensors installed in 280 homes across social housing in Cornwall, UK, to test for changes in domestic electricity, gas and water usage in response to government guidance. Gas usage increased by 20% following advice to stay at home, the week before full lockdown, although no difference was seen during full lockdown itself. During full lockdown, morning electricity usage shifted to later in the day, decreasing at 6 a.m. and increasing at midday. These changes in energy were echoed in water usage, with a 17% increase and a one-hour delay in peak morning usage. Changes were consistent with people getting up later, spending more time at home and washing more during full lockdown. Evidence for these changes was also observed in later lockdowns, but not between lockdowns. Our findings suggest more compliance with an enforced stay-at-home message than with advice. We discuss implications for socioeconomically disadvantaged households given the indication of inability to achieve increased energy needs during the pandemic.

Real-time monitoring of COVID-19 dynamics using automated trend fitting and anomaly detection.

As several countries gradually release social distancing measures, rapid detection of new localized COVID-19 hotspots and subsequent intervention will be key to avoiding large-scale resurgence of transmission. We introduce ASMODEE (automatic selection of models and outlier detection for epidemics), a new tool for detecting sudden changes in COVID-19 incidence. Our approach relies on automatically selecting the best (fitting or predicting) model from a range of user-defined time series models, excluding the most recent data points, to characterize the main trend in an incidence. We then derive prediction intervals and classify data points outside this interval as outliers, which provides an objective criterion for identifying departures from previous trends. We also provide a method for selecting the optimal breakpoints, used to define how many recent data points are to be excluded from the trend fitting procedure. The analysis of simulated COVID-19 outbreaks suggests ASMODEE compares favourably with a state-of-art outbreak-detection algorithm while being simpler and more flexible. As such, our method could be of wider use for infectious disease surveillance. We illustrate ASMODEE using publicly available data of National Health Service (NHS) Pathways reporting potential COVID-19 cases in England at a fine spatial scale, showing that the method would have enabled the early detection of the flare-ups in Leicester and Blackburn with Darwen, two to three weeks before their respective lockdown. ASMODEE is implemented in the free R package trendbreaker. This article is part of the theme issue 'Modelling that shaped the early COVID-19 pandemic response in the UK'.

Explaining inequalities in fruit and vegetable intake in Europe: The role of capabilities, opportunities and motivations.

People who do not eat enough fruit and vegetables (F&V) have incremental health risks. Most Europeans do not comply with health recommendations relating to F&V consumption and this is especially true for those with lower-level education, which reinforces structural inequalities in health and wellbeing among Europeans. This study investigated the role of key behavioural triggers - capabilities, opportunities and motivation (in the COM-B model) - as pathways for educational differentials in F&V intake in Europe. A cross-sectional survey-based study was conducted in five European countries differing widely in their consumption habits, wealth, and climatic conditions. A structural equation model was designed to study how capabilities (diet perceived knowledge, health purchase criteria), opportunities (financial availability, social norms), and motivations (health value, habits strength) affect educational inequalities in the intake of F&V (5 portions a day) as mediators. Multi-group comparisons assessed country differences. People with higher levels of education were more likely to eat the recommended diet, i.e., at least 5 portions of F&V a day. Countries in the sample vary significantly in the percentage of people complying with the recommendation, but not significantly in terms of relative education differentials. The educational gap in the intake of F&V is mainly explained by education differentials in financial availability, diet knowledge, and habits in inserting F&V in main meals. Policies targeting dietary inequalities should address behavioural triggers affecting dietary intake, for example by subsidising F&V, developing targeted dietary awareness campaigns, or by intervening in mass catering contexts to facilitate the implementation of healthy habits.

Fostering Engagement With Health and Housing Innovation: Development of Participant Personas in a Social Housing Cohort.

BACKGROUND: Personas, based on customer or population data, are widely used to inform design decisions in the commercial sector. The variety of methods available means that personas can be produced from projects of different types and scale. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to experiment with the use of personas that bring together data from a survey, household air measurements and electricity usage sensors, and an interview within a research and innovation project, with the aim of supporting eHealth and eWell-being product, process, and service development through broadening the engagement with and understanding of the data about the local community. METHODS: The project participants were social housing residents (adults only) living in central Cornwall, a rural unitary authority in the United Kingdom. A total of 329 households were recruited between September 2017 and November 2018, with 235 (71.4%) providing complete baseline survey data on demographics, socioeconomic position, household composition, home environment, technology ownership, pet ownership, smoking, social cohesion, volunteering, caring, mental well-being, physical and mental health-related quality of life, and activity. K-prototype cluster analysis was used to identify 8 clusters among the baseline survey responses. The sensor and interview data were subsequently analyzed by cluster and the insights from all 3 data sources were brought together to produce the personas, known as the Smartline Archetypes. RESULTS: The Smartline Archetypes proved to be an engaging way of presenting data, accessible to a broader group of stakeholders than those who accessed the raw anonymized data, thereby providing a vehicle for greater research engagement, innovation, and impact. CONCLUSIONS: Through the adoption of a tool widely used in practice, research projects could generate greater policy and practical impact, while also becoming more transparent and open to the public.

Encouraging and Enabling Lifestyles and Behaviours to Simultaneously Promote Environmental Sustainability, Health and Equity: Key Policy Messages from INHERIT.

Human consumption and activity are damaging the global ecosystem and the resources on which we rely for health, well-being and survival. The COVID-19 crisis is yet another manifestation of the urgent need to transition to more sustainable societies, further exposing the weaknesses in health systems and the injustice in our societies. It also underlines that many of the factors leading to environmental degradation, ill health and social and health inequities are interlinked. The current situation provides an unprecedented opportunity to invest in initiatives that address these common factors and encourage people to live more healthily and sustainably. Such initiatives can generate the positive feedback loops needed to change the systems and structures that shape our lives. INHERIT (January 2016-December 2019), an ambitious, multisectoral and transnational research project that involved 18 organisations across Europe, funded by the European Commission, explored such solutions. It identified, defined and analysed promising inter-sectoral policies, practices and approaches to simultaneously promote environmental sustainability, protect and promote health and contribute to health equity (the INHERIT "triple-win") and that can encourage and enable people to live, move and consume more healthfully and sustainably. It also explored the facilitators and barriers to working across sectors and in public private cooperation. The insights were brought together in guidelines setting out how policy makers can help instigate and support local "triple-win" initiatives that influence behaviours as an approach to contributing to the change that is so urgently needed to stem environmental degradation and the interlinked threats to health and wellbeing. This article sets out this guidance, providing timely insights on how to "build back better" in the post pandemic era.

How to Achieve a Healthier and More Sustainable Europe by 2040 According to the Public? Results of a Five-Country Questionnaire Survey.

The aim of this paper is to understand public preferences for several future scenarios of achieving a healthier, more equitable and sustainable Europe, which differ in the way the society is organized (individualistically vs. collectively) and in the driving sector (public vs. private). To achieve this aim, we conducted a questionnaire survey using representative samples for five European countries in 2018. About three thousand respondents chose among the four scenarios presented within four different contexts (green spaces, active mobility, energy-efficient housing, food consumption) or none of them. A majority of people in the five European countries were ready to accept one of the scenarios. We found significant differences in preferences according to socioeconomic backgrounds and values of respondents. People above 35 years old, those who were less educated, and those in the lowest household income tertile were less supportive of all scenarios. The heterogeneity in preferences associated with differences in socioeconomic backgrounds was larger for the scenario in which society is organized individualistically and driven by the private sector. Smaller distinctions were found in case of the scenario in which society is organized collectively and is driven by the public sector. Departing from social psychological theories, we examine the role of altruistic, biospheric, egoistic, hedonic, and security values. People with stronger biospheric values were more likely to accept scenarios, particularly those which are driven by the public sector and where there is more collective organisation. Those with a more egoistic value orientation were more likely to have higher preferences for scenarios where the private sector had a dominant role. The policy implications, in terms of the selection and framing of policy measures to enhance public support, are discussed.

Providing Access to Urban Green Spaces: A Participatory Benefit-Cost Analysis in Spain.

The opening up of green spaces could provide significant benefits to society. This study develops a framework to assess the economic benefits and costs of public interventions providing citizen access to urban green spaces. The Thinking Fadura project in Getxo (Spain) was used as a case study. A method for participatory benefit-cost analysis is developed, where a stakeholder-participatory evaluation is combined with a standard cost-benefit analysis. The participatory evaluation followed a bottom-up approach in a sequential evaluation including three main focal points: key stakeholders and experts, visitors and the general public. The assessment demonstrates that the Thinking Fadura project's benefits outweigh the costs. The results suggest that projects designed with the purpose of improving green space accessibility to the general public can be beneficial from a societal perspective. The highest economic benefits were an increase in the amenity and recreational value and an increase in people's physical activity. The participatory evaluation indicates that giving access to people of lower socio-economic status and vulnerable groups and improving recreational use were perceived as the most beneficial. An increase in noise, dirt, and risk of criminal activities as well as potential conflicts between green space users were perceived as the most negative impacts of opening a previously restricted area to the general public. The economic assessment of Thinking Fadura project could serve as a model in the decision-making process in locations where the use of greenspaces is restricted.

A UK wide study of current prostate planning practice.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this work was to undertake a non-judgemental study of prostate planning practice across the UK by inviting all departments to undertake the same case. METHODS: An invitation to take part in the study was sent to the Heads of all UK radiotherapy departments and posted on the UK Medical Physics mailbase. Individuals interested in participating were able to access a single anonymised CT dataset for download with the prostate gland, seminal vesicles, bladder, rectum, bowel, femoral heads, and penile bulb outlined. A brief patient history was also supplied. Participants were asked to create planning target volumes (PTVs) according to their local clinical protocol and plan to give 60 Gy in 20 fractions to the PTV receiving the highest dose. No guidance was given for acceptable organ at risk doses. Dicom plan and dose information was loaded back into ProKnow for analysis by contributors. RESULTS: There were 102 plan submissions made to the study representing 48 different UK radiotherapy departments. Seventeen distinct methodologies for creating the prescription PTV from the prostate and seminal vesicles were identified with the ethos of the CHHIP trial protocol for margin growing followed in nearly two-thirds of cases. Positive correlations were found when assessing the doses received by the bladder and rectum against the volume of the PTV to which 60 Gy was prescribed. CONCLUSIONS: A national planning study whereby staff from a multitude of radiotherapy departments create plans based solely on a single dataset is feasible. The cohort of data was made available to all participants following the study to enable self-assessment and benchmarking against that of their peers. ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE: This is the first UK wide treatment planning study to investigate local clinical prostate planning practice. This has given UK departments the opportunity to evaluate their planning practices against those of their peers.

Correction to: Phthalates and asthma in children and adults: US NHANES 2007-2012.

The correct presentation name of the 4th Author is shown in this paper.

Ten Lessons for Good Practice for the INHERIT Triple Win: Health, Equity, and Environmental Sustainability.

The world's challenges of climate change, damage to ecosystems, and social and health inequalities require changes in human behaviours at every level of organisation, among governments, business, communities, and individuals. An important question is how behaviour change can be enabled and supported at the scale and speed required. The research reported in this paper describes important lessons for good practice in changing contexts to modify behaviours for a triple win for health, equity and environmental sustainability. Authors synthesised learning from qualitative, quantitative and cost benefit evaluations of 15 case studies conducted in 12 countries in Europe. The case studies address ways of living (green spaces and energy efficient housing), moving (active transport) and consuming (healthy and sustainable diets) that support the triple win. Ten lessons for good practice were identified. These include bringing a triple win mindset to policy and practice in planning interventions, with potential to improve environmental sustainability, health and equity at the same time. The lessons for good practice are intended to support governmental and non-governmental actors, practitioners and researchers planning to work across sectors to achieve mutual benefits for health and environmental sustainability and in particular to benefit poorer and more socio-economically disadvantaged groups.

Phthalates and asthma in children and adults: US NHANES 2007-2012.

Environmental exposure to phthalates may contribute to an increased risk of asthma in children and adults. We aimed to assess the direction and strength of the association between urinary phthalates metabolites and current asthma in children and adults that participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2007-2012. Data on ten urinary phthalate metabolites, self-reported questionnaires, spirometry measures, and covariates were obtained from 7765 participants (28.1% were children aged 6-17 years) taking part in the NHANES 2007-2012. Asthma was assessed using self-reported questionnaires for children and adults, and via spirometry measures for adults alone. We used crude and adjusted logistic regression models to estimate the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence interval (CI) per one log10 unit change in the concentration of phthalate metabolites. We further modeled the effect modification by sex. Out of 10 metabolites, only mono-benzyl phthalate (MBzP) was positively associated with the prevalence of self-reported asthma in children, after adjusting for a range of potential confounders (odds ratio 1.54; 95% confidence interval 1.05-2.27). No significant relationship was observed for adults. The association of mono-ethyl phthalate (MEP) was modified by sex, with significantly increased odds of asthma among males [boys (2.00; 1.14-3.51); adult males (1.32; 1.04-1.69)]. While no other phthalates showed a positive relationship with current asthma in males, mono-(carboxynonyl) phthalate (MCNP) and mono-(3-carboxylpropyl) phthalate (MCPP) were inversely associated with spirometrically defined asthma in adult females. A sex-specific relationship in adults was evident when spirometry, but not self-reported measures were used to define asthma. We found no clear association between exposure to phthalates and current asthma, except for a significant relationship between MBzP metabolites and self-reported asthma in children. As a result, exposure to phthalates and asthma development and/or exacerbations remains controversial, suggesting a need for a well-designed longitudinal study.

A Technological Scenario for a Healthier, More Equitable and Sustainable Europe in 2040: Citizen Perceptions and Policy Implications.

This article aims at exploring, understanding and comparing European citizens' insights and perceptions towards "My life between realities", a positive future scenario which depicts a narrative of reaching healthier, more equitable and sustainable societies by 2040 with the support of technology and technological solutions. It responds to the need for gathering and incorporating more citizen insights into future policy developments and strategic actions to tackle the global challenge of unsustainable development. Citizens of five European countries-the Czech Republic, Germany, North Macedonia, Spain and the United Kingdom-have been consulted through focus groups. The exercise has uncovered citizens' preferences and attitudes towards four main lifestyle areas; namely, green spaces, energy efficient housing, active mobility and (food) consumption. The technological attributes of the scenario led to citizens expressing diametrically opposed and critical perceptions and attitudes. Given the prospects of technology in driving sustainable development, based on these insights, policy recommendations for the better integration and acceptance of technological advances by the public are discussed herein.

Orbital infantile haemangioma: radiological features and treatment - case series and literature review.

AIM: The aim of this study is to report a retrospective case series on orbital infantile haemangiomas (OIH). Radiological features and treatment with oral propranolol (OP) are illustrated along with an updated literature review. METHODS: A retrospective chart review of six children, diagnosed with OIH from November 2015 to October 2016, was carried out. Only children with deep documented orbital involvement were included. All patients underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) under general anaesthesia. OP was administered to the infants according to the Nottingham Children's Hospital guideline. As per the guideline, a preliminary paediatric assessment was performed and a 1 mg/kg test dose was administered, followed by definitive treatment at a dosage of 2 mg/kg in three divided doses. RESULTS: Average age at presentation was within the first 3 weeks of life. T1 hypointensity, T2 hyperintensity, avid enhancement with contrast, and the presence of flow-voids appear a fixed pattern of OIH on MRI. Response to treatment was noticed within 4 weeks in all children, and two of them (33.3%) responded within the first 7 days. In two children (33.3%), the haemangioma became clinically undetectable by the seventh month of treatment, while the other four (66.6%) experienced an almost complete regression of the OIH by the last follow-up. No complications were found. CONCLUSIONS: Our series strengthens the understanding that MRI is the preferred imaging modality in the investigation of OIH, showing vascular features, detailed orbital extension, and possible associated malformations. OP is the treatment of choice for OIH, and our study confirms its safety and effectiveness.

The INHERIT Model: A Tool to Jointly Improve Health, Environmental Sustainability and Health Equity through Behavior and Lifestyle Change.

The need for analysis and action across the interrelated domains of human behaviors and lifestyles, environmental sustainability, health and inequality is increasingly apparent. Currently, these areas are often not considered in conjunction when developing policies or interventions, introducing the potential for suboptimal or conflicting outcomes. The INHERIT model has been developed within the EU-funded project INHERIT as a tool to guide thinking and intersectoral action towards changing the behaviors and lifestyles that play such an important role in today’s multidisciplinary challenges. The model integrates ecological public health and behavioral change models, emphasizing inequalities and those parts of the causal process that are influenced by human behaviors and lifestyles. The model was developed through web-based and live discussions with experts and policy stakeholders. To test the model’s usability, the model was applied to aspects of food consumption. This paper shows that the INHERIT model can serve as a tool to identify opportunities for change in important −food-related behaviors and lifestyles and to examine how they impact on health, health inequalities, and the environment in Europe and beyond. The INHERIT model helps clarify these interrelated domains, creating new opportunities to improve environmental health and health inequality, while taking our planetary boundaries into consideration.

Immunoglobulin G; structure and functional implications of different subclass modifications in initiation and resolution of allergy.

IgE and not IgG is usually associated with allergy. IgE lodged on mast cells in skin or gut and basophils in the blood allows for the prolonged duration of allergy through the persistent expression of high affinity IgE receptors. However, many allergic reactions are not dependent on IgE and are generated in the absence of allergen specific and even total IgE. Instead, IgG plasma cells are involved in induction of, and for much of the pathogenesis of, allergic diseases. The pattern of IgG producing plasma cells in atopic children and the tendency for direct or further class switching to IgE are the principle factors responsible for long-lasting sensitization of mast cells in allergic children. Indirect class switching from IgG producing plasma cells has been shown to be the predominant pathway for production of IgE while a Th2 microenvironment, genetic predisposition, and the concentration and nature of allergens together act on IgG plasma cells in the atopic tendency to undergo further immunoglobulin gene recombination. The seminal involvement of IgG in allergy is further indicated by the principal role of IgG4 in the natural resolution of allergy and as the favourable immunological response to immunotherapy. This paper will look at allergy through the role of different antibodies than IgE and give current knowledge of the nature and role of IgG antibodies in the start, maintenance and resolution of allergy.