title: Tobacco smoke "sensitivity"--is there an immunologic basis?
abstract: This study was undertaken to determine if there is an immunologic basis for reported tobacco-smoke hypersensitivity in man. Ninety-three individuals who were recruited on the basis of their smoking history and/or claimed sensitivity to tobacco smoke were skin prick tested with tobacco smoke and leaf extracts and their sera analyzed for reaginic and precipitating antibodies to these antigens. Results demonstrated that a significant number of the individuals who were tested had positive skin test and RAST responses to tobacco leaf antigens, whereas only a small number responded to smoke antigens. RAST or skin test responses of study subjects to leaf or smoke antigens did not correlate with symptoms of tobacco-smoke "sensitivity" or smoking history but did correlate with atopic status. Precipitins were detected only to tobacco leaf C in 46 of the 93 individuals who were tested but did not correlate with smoking history or smoke "sensitivity." These results suggest that subjective tobacco-smoke sensitivity is not caused by hypersensitivity to tobacco leaf or smoke antigens.
mesh_terms: D000941:Antigens; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000276:immunology; D010947:Plants, Toxic; D011234:Precipitins / Q000276:immunology; D011852:Radioallergosorbent Test; D011935:Reagins / Q000276:immunology; D012882:Skin Tests; D012906:Smoke / Q000009:adverse effects*; D014026:Nicotiana / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000941:Antigens; D010936:Plant Extracts; D011234:Precipitins; D011935:Reagins; D012906:Smoke