Pollen of Broussonetia papyrifera: An emerging aeroallergen associated with allergic illness in Taiwan.

Pollen has long been recognized as a major allergen, having diverse patterns of allergenicity caused by differences in climate, geography, and vegetation. Our research aimed to explore the role of a regionally dominant pollen in Taiwan, Broussonetia papyrifera, on clinical sensitization and daily 5collected and extracted for a skin prick test on 30 volunteers recruited from a medical college. Daily atmospheric pollen levels were measured using a Burkard 7-day volumetric trap. The association between daily atmospheric pollen levels and clinic visits for allergic illness was examined using a generalized additive model with a normal assumption. After excluding four participants with a positive response to a negative control, 10 participants (38.4%) were determined to be sensitive to B. papyrifera pollen extract. The three-day lagged concentration of B. papyrifera pollen exhibited the highest risk of daily asthma visits (relative risk [RR] = 1.166, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.014-1.341) and allergic rhinitis visits (RR = 1.119, 95% CI: 0.916-1.367) when the pollen increased equally in magnitude to its mean. Our study is the first to provide evidence indicating that the most dominant airborne pollen in Taiwan, B. papyrifera, plays a major role in sensitization and clinic visits for asthma and allergic rhinitis, thus highlighting the need to integrate aeroallergen monitoring with clinical diagnosis.

Skin Prick Test Reactivity to Common Aeroallergens among Allergic Rhinitis Patients.

OBJECTIVE: To identify the common aeroallergens causing allergy symptoms among the allergic rhinitis patients. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: Department of Immunology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP), Rawalpindi, from January to July 2016. METHODOLOGY: Patients with a clinical diagnosis of allergic rhinitis were enrolled. Skin Prick Test (SPT) was performed on these patients using 12 common aeroallergens along with positive (histamine hydrochloride, 10 mg/ml) and negative (glycerin saline) controls. Results were recorded after 15 minutes, considering a wheal diameter >3 mm as positive. Chi-square test was used to compare frequencies; and p-value of less than 0.05 was considered significant. RESULTS: Out of 130 patients, 78 (60%) were males and 52 (40%) were females. The rate of sensitization to any allergen was 90%. One hundred and two (78%) were poly-sensitized to more than two allergens and 20% were sensitized to more than six allergens. Most common outdoor and indoor allergens were Broussonetia papyrifera (50.7%) and Dermatophagoides farina (42.3%), respectively. Dog epithelia and aspergillus were the least prevalent allergens (13.8% each). CONCLUSION: This study highlighted an increased overall frequency of sensitization to any allergen and significance of tree and weed allergens; especially, Broussonetia papyrifera and Cannabis sativa. It also emphasized increased prevalence of skin reactivity to indoor allergen, Dermatophagoides farina in the city.

Purification and identification of 72 kDa and 15 kDa allergens from Broussonetia papyrifera pollen.

"Broussonetia papyrifera" (Chinese mulberry) pollen is an important source of allergens in regions surrounding Shanghai, China. To identify and purify major allergens from "B. papyrifera" pollen that reacted with serum antibodies from sensitized patients, "B. papyrifera" pollen was defatted, dried, and extracted proteins were separated using SP cationic exchange or Q anionic exchange columns.Serum samples from 29 allergic patients and 4 healthy controls were collected. Allergens in eluted fractions were identified by Western blot and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) using serum samples. An inhibitory assay was used to verify allergen-specific antiserum specificity.Serum IgE of 2 patients reacted with a 15 kDa protein band. The protein was eluted with 0.1M NaCl from a SP cationic exchange column. Serum samples from the same patients positively reacted with ELISA plate coated with partially purified 15 kDa protein. Serum IgE of 11 patients reacted with a 72 kDa protein band. The protein was eluted with 0.3M NaCl from a Q anionic exchange column. Serum samples from five patients positively reacted with ELISA coated with partially purified 72 kDa protein.Our preliminary purifications identified two proteins of 72 kDa and 15 kDa as allergens derived from "B. papyrifera" pollen, which reacted with allergic patients' serum IgE.