Delineating diversity and specificity of an IgE-encoding transcriptome

Författare

Helena Persson
Ulrika Andreasson
Mardjaneh Karbalaei
Mats Ohlin

Summary, in English

IgE is a minor component of the humoral immune response but one that is of extensive medical importance as it is a major mediator of type 1 hypersensitivity or allergy. Allergy affects up to 30% of the population in the industrialized countries, consequently affecting the quality of life of millions of people. In this study we sought to investigate the IgE repertoire and its evolution as it occurs in grass pollen allergic subjects. For this purpose, a human IgE library was constructed by combining the IgE heavy chain genes with kappa and lambda light chain genes, which were isolated from peripheral blood B-cells of an individual with timothy allergy. The library was screened, using phage display, against a panel of six different timothy allergens. This procedure allowed us to delineate the specificity of more than 25% of the IgE-producing transcripts in this allergic individual. Apart from providing valuable insights into the diversity and specificity of allergy-inducing repertoires, we have established a range of antibodies that can aid us in the quest to define ways how human IgE antibodies recognize grass pollen allergens, which in turn can provide important clues in the design of new allergy vaccines.

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