title: RANTES production from mononuclear cells in response to the specific allergen in asthma patients.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Eosinophils are considered to be the major inflammatory cells in asthma. Since regulated on activation, normal T expressed and secreted (RANTES) is a potent chemoattractant for various important inflammatory cells such as eosinophils as well as memory T cells potentially recruiting these cells to an inflamed focus, RANTES has been considered to play a key role in various allergic disorders such as asthma.
  
  
  METHODS
  To extend our understanding of the participation of eosinophils and T cells in relation to the production of RANTES in response to the specific allergen in asthma, we examined the production of RANTES from peripheral blood mononuclear cells cultured with specific allergen in atopic asthma patients by a sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.
  
  
  RESULTS
  It was revealed that mononuclear cells produced RANTES but not eotaxin in response to the specific allergen in asthma. RANTES production from mononuclear cells of asthma patients with eosinophilia was greater than that of asthma patients without eosinophilia. Moreover, in this study, no differences in RANTES production between CD4 negative cells and CD8 negative cells were observed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Taken together, these findings may suggest that mononuclear cells play a crucial role in the pathogenesis, particular in eosinophil and T lymphocyte recruitment into the inflamed focus of asthma through RANTES production in response to the specific allergen.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical and Laboratory Medicine, Akita University School of Medicine, Akita, Japan.
authors.forename: Hajime
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Oyamada
authors.forename: Yumiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kamada
authors.forename: Norihiro
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tsuda
authors.forename: Osamu
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Urayama
authors.forename: Hidekazu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yamada
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hirasawa
authors.forename: Kazutoshi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yamaguchi
authors.forename: Shigeharu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ueki
authors.forename: Junichi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chihara
mesh_terms: D000485:Allergens / Q000276:immunology*; D001249:Asthma / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D018946:Chemokine CCL5 / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000502:physiology; D004804:Eosinophils / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D007963:Leukocytes, Mononuclear / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000485:Allergens; D018946:Chemokine CCL5