title: Engineering of the major house dust mite allergen Der f 2 for allergen-specific immunotherapy.
abstract: A major problem with allergen-specific immunotherapy involving repeated injection of allergens is the risk of an anaphylactic reaction. We engineered the major house dust mite allergen, Der f 2, to reduce its capacity to induce skin test reactivity and histamine release from peripheral blood basophils in allergic patients. The engineered allergen, in which the disulfide bond that linked the N- and C-terminal sequences of Der f 2 was disrupted, retained T-cell epitopes essential for immunotherapy and ability to stimulate T-cell proliferation. Such engineered allergens are potentially useful for safer and more effective immunotherapy for allergies.
authors.affiliation: Bioscience Research and Development Laboratory, Asahi Breweries, Ltd., Ibaraki, Japan.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Takai
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yokota
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yasue
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Nishiyama
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yuuki
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mori
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Okudaira
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Okumura
mesh_terms: D000485:Allergens / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D000941:Antigens / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D039741:Antigens, Dermatophagoides; D001491:Basophils / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D002455:Cell Division / Q000187:drug effects; D003545:Cysteine / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D003888:Desensitization, Immunologic; D004220:Disulfides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D018984:Epitopes, T-Lymphocyte / Q000276:immunology; D005818:Genetic Engineering; D006023:Glycoproteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D006636:Histamine Release / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000378:metabolism; D008925:Mites / Q000276:immunology*; D016297:Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; D012882:Skin Tests
chemical_list: D000485:Allergens; D000941:Antigens; D039741:Antigens, Dermatophagoides; D004220:Disulfides; D018984:Epitopes, T-Lymphocyte; D006023:Glycoproteins; D007073:Immunoglobulin E; D003545:Cysteine