Anti-CCR3 (N-terminal) polyclonal antibody

Background: Several different criteria for the positivity of the flow-assisted Basophil Activation Test (BAT) for the diagnosis of Neuromuscular Blocking Agents (NMBA) hypersensitivity reactions have been used in past studies. Our aims were to determine the threshold for BAT positivity expressed as the stimulation index (SI, calculated as the percentage of activated basophils after stimulation with NMBA divided by the number of basophils with no NMBA stimulation) and as the percentage of activated basophils, and to determine the sensitivity and specificity of BAT for NMBAs. Methods: 22 consenting adult patients with previous intraanaesthetic NMBAs-related hypersensitivity reactions were tested for the culprit drug. 34 controls who tolerated NMBAs were similarly tested. BAT was performed using Flow2Cast technique and the up-regulation of the CD63 marker on the basophils was measured using Cell Quest programme (FACSCalibur Becton Dickinson, USA). Receiver operating characteristics curve (ROC) analysis was performed. Results: ROC curve analysis for BAT results versus history yields a stimulation index of 1.76 as the optimal threshold, with an AUC of 0.81 (CI 95% 0.69-0.93, p < 0.01) and a percentage of activated basophils >5.01%, with an AUC of 0.84 (CI 95% 0.72-0.95, p < 0.01). Considering both thresholds (the SI >= 1.76 together with the percentage of activated basophils > 5%) as diagnostic criteria, 15 patients had positive BAT, the overall BAT sensitivity being 68.18% (CI 95% 45.11-82.26%). None of the controls fulfilled both criteria and the specificity of the test was 100% (CI 95% 87.35-100%). Conclusions: With a stimulation index >= 1.76 and a percentage of activated basophils >5.01% as threshold, the performance of BAT for NMBAs yields 68.18% sensitivity and 100% specificity.

Illicium verum is used in traditional medicine to treat inflammation. The study investigates the effects of IVE and its component, trans-anethole (AET), on airway inflammation in ovalbumin-(OVA-) induced asthmatic mice. Asthma was induced in BALB/c mice by systemic sensitization to OVA, followed by intratracheal, intraperitoneal, and aerosol allergen challenges. IVE and AET were orally administered for four weeks. We investigated the effects of treatment on airway hyperresponsiveness, IgE production, pulmonary eosinophilic infiltration, immune cell phenotypes, Th2 cytokine production in bronchoalveolar lavage, Th1/Th2 cytokine production in splenocytes, forkhead box protein 3 (Foxp3) expression, and lung histology. IVE and AET ameliorated OVA-driven airway hyperresponsiveness (p < 0 01), pulmonary eosinophilic infiltration (p < 0 05), mucus hypersecretion (p < 0 01), and IL-4, IL-5, IL-13, and CCR3 production (p < 0 05), as well as IgE levels (p < 0 01). IVE and AET increased Foxp3 expression in lungs (p < 0 05). IVE and AET reduced IL-4 and increased IFN-gamma production in the supernatant of splenocyte cultures (p < 0 05). Histological studies showed that IVE and AET inhibited eosinophilia and lymphocyte infiltration in lungs (p < 0 01). These results indicate that IVE and AET exert antiasthmatic effects through upregulation of Foxp3(+) regulatory T cells and inhibition of Th2 cytokines, suggesting that IVE may be a potential therapeutic agent for allergic lung inflammation.