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A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Immunology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2023) | Viewed by 14638

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Rebecca Sharon Chinthrajah

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Guest Editor

Department of Medicine, Sean N. Parker Center for Allergy and Asthma Research, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94304, USA
Interests: food allergy; asthma; allergy; immunology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Food allergies are on the rise worldwide, posing a significant burden on public health and quality of life. For decades, the standard of care for food allergies was to avoid the allergen and use epinephrine upon allergic attack. However, advances in our understanding of the mechanisms behind allergic diseases have led to a paradigm shift, in which early introduction of foods can reduce the development of food allergies. Despite these advances, the prevalence of food allergic disease is still on the rise, highlighting the urgent need for further insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis, regulation, treatment, and prevention of allergic disease.

This Special Issue focuses on recent advances in understanding the molecular mechanisms driving food allergies, with particular emphasis on new insights in the intersection of immunology, metabolism, and neurology in the development and treatment of allergic disease. The overall aim of this issue is to provide a deeper understanding of the underlying causes of allergic diseases to aid in the future development of next generation therapies.

We invite investigators to contribute original research articles and review articles. Please note that pure clinical or model studies are unsuitable for this journal, but clinical submissions with biomolecular studies are welcome.

Dr. Rebecca Sharon Chinthrajah
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

food allergy
asthma
immunnology
metabolism
IgE
neurology
epitopes

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Editorial

Jump to: Research, Review

4 pages, 162 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Recent Mechanistic Studies in Allergic Diseases

by Sayantani B. Sindher, Reyna Sharma, Medha Yarlagadda, Andrew R. Chin and R. Sharon Chinthrajah

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(18), 14312; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241814312 - 20 Sep 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1035

Abstract

Allergic diseases, such as food allergies, asthma, and allergic rhinitis, continue to present a significant challenge for a broad cross-section of the population, despite recent advancements in their treatment and prevention [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Immunometabolism and Immunologic Mechanisms in Allergy Diseases)

Research

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10 pages, 1240 KiB

Open AccessCommunication

Intra-Airway Treatment with Synthetic Lipoxin A4 and Resolvin E2 Mitigates Neonatal Asthma Triggered by Maternal Exposure to Environmental Particles

by Mohankumar Ramar, Naohiro Yano and Alexey V. Fedulov

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(7), 6145; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24076145 - 24 Mar 2023

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 1264

Abstract

Particulate matter in the air exacerbates airway inflammation (AI) in asthma; moreover, prenatal exposure to concentrated urban air particles (CAPs) and diesel exhaust particles (DEPs) predisposes the offspring to asthma and worsens the resolution of AI in response to allergens. We previously tested the hypothesis that such exposure impairs the pathways of specialized proresolving mediators that are critical for resolution and found declined Lipoxin A4 (LxA4) and Resolvin E2 (RvE2) levels in the “at-risk” pups of exposed mothers. Here, we hypothesized that supplementation with synthetic LxA4 or RvE2 via the airway can ameliorate AI after allergen exposure, which has not been tested in models with environmental toxicant triggers. BALB/c newborns with an asthma predisposition resultant from prenatal exposure to CAPs and DEPs were treated once daily for 3 days with 750 ng/mouse of LxA4 or 300 ng/mouse of RvE2 through intranasal instillation, and they were tested with the intentionally low-dose ovalbumin protocol that elicits asthma in the offspring of particle-exposed mothers but not control mothers, mimicking the enigmatic maternal transmission of asthma seen in humans. LxA4 and RvE2 ameliorated the asthma phenotype and improved AI resolution, which was seen as declining airway eosinophilia, lung tissue infiltration, and proallergic cytokine levels. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Immunometabolism and Immunologic Mechanisms in Allergy Diseases)

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14 pages, 3716 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Functional Alteration and Differential Expression of the Bitter Taste Receptor T2R38 in Human Paranasal Sinus in Patients with Chronic Rhinosinusitis

by Kota Takemoto, Luga Santo Lomude, Sachio Takeno, Tomohiro Kawasumi, Yukako Okamoto, Takao Hamamoto, Takashi Ishino, Yuki Ando, Chie Ishikawa and Tsutomu Ueda

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(5), 4499; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24054499 - 24 Feb 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1745

Abstract

The bitter taste receptors (T2Rs) expressed in human sinonasal mucosae are known to elicit innate immune responses involving the release of nitric oxide (NO). We investigated the expression and distribution of two T2Rs, T2R14 and T2R38, in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) and correlated the results with fractional exhaled NO (FeNO) levels and genotype of the T2R38 gene (TAS2R38). Using the Japanese Epidemiological Survey of Refractory Eosinophilic Chronic Rhinosinusitis (JESREC) phenotypic criteria, we identified CRS patients as either eosinophilic (ECRS, n = 36) or non-eosinophilic (non-ECRS, n = 56) patients and compared these groups with 51 non-CRS subjects. Mucosal specimens from the ethmoid sinus, nasal polyps, and inferior turbinate were collected from all subjects, together with blood samples, for RT-PCR analysis, immunostaining, and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) typing. We observed significant downregulation of T2R38 mRNA levels in the ethmoid mucosa of non-ECRS patients and in the nasal polyps of ECRS patients. No significant differences in T2R14 or T2R38 mRNA levels were found among the inferior turbinate mucosae of the three groups. Positive T2R38 immunoreactivity was localized mainly in epithelial ciliated cells, whereas secretary goblet cells generally showed lack of staining. The patients in the non-ECRS group showed significantly lower oral and nasal FeNO levels compared with the control group. There was a trend towards higher CRS prevalence in the PAV/AVI and AVI/AVI genotype groups as compared to the PAV/PAV group. Our findings reveal complex but important roles of T2R38 function in ciliated cells associated with specific CRS phenotypes, suggesting the T2R38 pathway as a potential therapeutic target for promotion of endogenous defense mechanisms. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Immunometabolism and Immunologic Mechanisms in Allergy Diseases)

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11 pages, 1433 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Anti-Allergic Activity of Fucoidan Can Be Enhanced by Coexistence with Quercetin

by Masashi Mizuno, Asuka Fujioka, Shiho Bitani, Ken-ichiro Minato and Hiroyuki Sakakibara

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(20), 12163; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms232012163 - 12 Oct 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1788

Abstract

In recent years, the incidence of type I hypersensitivity including hay fever has been increasing year by year in Japan. Our previous study using mice showed that only oral, but not intraperitoneal, administration of fucoidan extracted from seaweed (Saccharina japonica) suppressed type I hypersensitivity by secretion of galectin-9, which has a high affinity for IgE in the blood. However, the amount of seaweed required to achieve this activity is quite high (12 g dry weight per person per day). Therefore, the purpose of this study was to search for food ingredients in vegetables that enhance type I hypersensitivity suppression effect when consumed together with fucoidan. As a result, the enhanced effect was observed in extracts from Welsh onions and onions among vegetables. When we compared the polyphenols in the vegetables that showed activity with those that did not, flavonols such as quercetin and kaempferol were found as candidates. When quercetin or kaempferol (100 μg each) were orally administered at the same time, even at amounts where fucoidan alone showed no anti-allergic activity, anti-allergic effects were observed. More interestingly, when both flavonols were combined and administered simultaneously at half the amount of each of the above flavonols (50 μg), while the fucoidan amount remained the same, a similar effect was observed as when each flavonol (100 μg) was administered alone. The simultaneous intake of fucoidan and vegetables containing high contents of quercetin or kaempferol may reduce fucoidan intake while maintaining the allergy suppression effect, suggesting the importance of food combination. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Immunometabolism and Immunologic Mechanisms in Allergy Diseases)

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17 pages, 1946 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Oral Exposure to Low-Dose Bisphenol S on Allergic Asthma in Mice

by Rie Yanagisawa, Eiko Koike, Tin-Tin Win-Shwe and Hirohisa Takano

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(18), 10790; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms231810790 - 15 Sep 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1997

Abstract

Bisphenol S (BPS) is increasingly being used as an alternative for bisphenol A; however, its health effects remain unclear. We investigated the effects of oral exposure to low-dose BPS on allergic asthma. C3H/HeJ male mice were intratracheally administered with allergen (ovalbumin (OVA), 1 μg/animal) every 2 weeks from 6 to 11 weeks old. BPS was ingested by drinking water at doses equivalent to 0.04, 0.4, and 4 μg/kg/day. We then examined pulmonary inflammation, airway hyperresponsiveness, serum OVA-specific immunoglobulin (Ig) levels, Th2 cytokine/chemokine production, and mediastinal lymph node (MLN) cell activities. Compared with OVA alone, moderate-dose BPS (BPS-M) with OVA significantly enhanced pulmonary inflammation, airway hyperresponsiveness, and OVA-specific IgE and IgG1. Furthermore, interleukin (IL)-5, IL-13, IL-33, and CCL11/Eotaxin protein levels in the lungs increased. Conversely, these allergic responses were reduced in the high-dose BPS+OVA group. In MLN cells, BPS-M with OVA increased the total cell count and activated antigen-presenting cells including conventional dendritic cell subset (cDC2). After OVA restimulation, cell proliferation and Th2 cytokine production (IL-4, IL-5, and IL-13) in the culture supernatant also increased. Therefore, oral exposure to low-dose BPS may exacerbate allergic asthmatic responses by enhancing Th2-polarized responses and activating the MLN cells. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Immunometabolism and Immunologic Mechanisms in Allergy Diseases)

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Review

Jump to: Editorial, Research

12 pages, 317 KiB

Open AccessReview

Current Practice in Pediatric Cow’s Milk Protein Allergy–Immunological Features and Beyond

by Vanessza Emmert, Dominika Lendvai-Emmert, Kata Eklics, Viktória Prémusz and Gergely Péter Tóth

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(5), 5025; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24055025 - 6 Mar 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3206

Abstract

Cow’s milk protein allergy is one of the most common pediatric food allergies. It poses a significant socioeconomic burden in industrialized countries and has a profound effect on the quality of life of affected individuals and their families. Diverse immunologic pathways can lead to the clinical symptoms of cow’s milk protein allergy; some of the pathomechanisms are known in detail, but others need further elucidation. A comprehensive understanding of the development of food allergies and the features of oral tolerance could have the potential to unlock more precise diagnostic tools and novel therapeutic approaches for patients with cow’s milk protein allergy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Immunometabolism and Immunologic Mechanisms in Allergy Diseases)

12 pages, 1136 KiB

Open AccessReview

The Role of TGFβ and Other Cytokines in Regulating Mast Cell Functions in Allergic Inflammation

by Tamara T. Haque and Pamela A. Frischmeyer-Guerrerio

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(18), 10864; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms231810864 - 17 Sep 2022

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2789

Abstract

Mast cells (MC) are a key effector cell in multiple types of immune responses, including atopic conditions. Allergic diseases have been steadily rising across the globe, creating a growing public health problem. IgE-mediated activation of MCs leads to the release of potent mediators that can have dire clinical consequences. Current therapeutic options to inhibit MC activation and degranulation are limited; thus, a better understanding of the mechanisms that regulate MC effector functions in allergic inflammation are necessary in order to develop effective treatment options with minimal side effects. Several cytokines have been identified that play multifaceted roles in regulating MC activation, including TGFβ, IL-10, and IL-33, and others that appear to serve primarily anti-inflammatory functions, including IL-35 and IL-37. Here, we review the literature examining cytokines that regulate MC-mediated allergic immune responses. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Immunometabolism and Immunologic Mechanisms in Allergy Diseases)

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