Anti-C. herbarum Monoclonal antibody

In recent years, considerable attention has been paid in obtaining purified relevant allergens from fungi associated with allergy. Using molecular biology techniques, a number of mold allergens have been obtained by cloning the genes encoding the allergens. Currently, about 70 fungal allergens have been approved by the International Allergen Nomenclature Committee. In this review, we have presented major allergens from Aspergillus, Penicillium, Cladosporium, and Alternaria and discussed their immunochemical characteristics and their role in the diagnosis of allergy and possible usefulness in understanding the pathogenesis of the disease. The structure-function properties and the potential role of these recombinant allergens in the immunomodulatory therapy also are presented. Copyright (C) 2002 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Aims: To examine how UVC affects the different genera of fungi commonly isolated from grapes, with the aim of understanding changes in mycobiota during grape ripening and possible applications for preventing grape decay during storage. Methods and Results: Spores of Aspergillus carbonarius, Aspergillus niger, Cladosporium herbarum, Penicillium janthinellum and Alternaria alternata (between 100-250 spores/plate agar) were UVC irradiated for 0 (control), 10, 20, 30, 60, 300 and 600 s. Plates were incubated at 25 degrees C and colonies were counted daily up to 7 days. Alternaria alternata and Aspergillus carbonarius were the most resistant fungi. Conidial germination in these species was reduced by approx. 25% after 10 s of exposure, compared with greater than 70% reduction for the remaining species tested. Penicillium janthinellum spores were the most susceptible at this wavelength. UVC exposures of 300 s prevented growth of all isolates studied, except for Alternaria alternata. Conclusion: UVC irradiation plays a major role in selecting for particular fungi that dominate the mycobiota of drying grapes. Significance and Impact of the study: The UVC irradiation of harvested grapes could prevent germination of contaminant fungi during storage or further dehydration.