title: Establishment and characterization of ovalbumin-specific T cell lines from patients with egg allergy.
abstract: In order to investigate T cell recognition of allergens in hen egg allergy, we have established 30 ovalbumin (OVA)-specific T cell lines (TCLs) from peripheral blood mononuclear cells of 6 patients with atopic dermatitis, who are positive for IgE antibodies to OVA and clinically allergic to hen egg, and characterized them for their cytokine production pattern. All TCLs we could study were mainly composed of CD4+ T cells. Most TCLs produced significant amounts of interleukin 4 (IL-4) and IL-5 but no or very little interferon gamma on antigen stimulation, suggesting that these TCLs belong to TH2-type T cells. Restriction elements and epitope specificities were further studied on some TCLs. Antibody blocking of the proliferative responses of the TCLs to OVA indicated that HLA-DR are acting as the dominant restriction elements for these TCLs with minor contribution of HLA-DQ. By use of 187 overlapping synthetic peptides covering the whole sequence of OVA, at least 3 different T cell epitopes were identified.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Chiba University School of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Katsuki
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shimojo
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Honma
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tsunoo
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kohno
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Niimi
mesh_terms: D000485:Allergens / Q000235:genetics; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002460:Cell Line; D002645:Chickens; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016207:Cytokines / Q000096:biosynthesis; D003876:Dermatitis, Atopic / Q000276:immunology; D018604:Epitope Mapping; D018984:Epitopes, T-Lymphocyte / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D005512:Food Hypersensitivity / Q000276:immunology*; D006680:HLA Antigens; D006801:Humans; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000097:blood; D007223:Infant; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010047:Ovalbumin / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000485:Allergens; D016207:Cytokines; D018984:Epitopes, T-Lymphocyte; D006680:HLA Antigens; D010446:Peptide Fragments; D007073:Immunoglobulin E; D010047:Ovalbumin