title: Mesenteric lymph node transcriptome profiles in BALB/c mice sensitized to three common food allergens.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Food allergy is a serious health concern among infants and young children. Although immunological mechanism of food allergy is well documented, the molecular mechanism(s) involved in food allergen sensitization have not been well characterized. Therefore, the present study analyzed the mesenteric lymph node (MLN) transcriptome profiles of BALB/c mice in response to three common food allergens.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Microarray analysis identified a total of 1361, 533 and 488 differentially expressed genes in response to β-lactoglobulin (BLG) from cow's milk, ovalbumin (OVA) from hen's egg white and peanut agglutinin (PNA) sensitizations, respectively (p < 0.05). A total of 150 genes were commonly expressed in all antigen sensitized groups. The expression of seven representative genes from microarray experiment was validated by real-time RT-PCR. All allergens induced significant ear swelling and serum IgG1 concentrations, whereas IgE concentrations were increased in BLG- and PNA-treated mice (p < 0.05). Treatment with OVA and PNA significantly induced plasma histamine concentrations (p < 0.05). The PCA demonstrated the presence of allergen-specific IgE in the serum of previously sensitized and challenged mice.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Immunological profiles indicate that the allergen dosages used are sufficient to sensitize the BALB/c mice and to conduct transcriptome profiling. Microarray studies identified several differentially expressed genes in the sensitization phase of the food allergy. These findings will help to better understand the underlying molecular mechanism(s) of food allergen sensitizations and may be useful in identifying the potential biomarkers of food allergy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal & Poultry Science, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Mainul
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Husain
authors.forename: Herman J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Boermans
authors.forename: Niel A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Karrow
mesh_terms: D000485:Allergens / Q000276:immunology*; D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005512:Food Hypersensitivity / Q000276:immunology*; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D006632:Histamine / Q000097:blood; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000276:immunology; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000276:immunology; D007782:Lactoglobulins / Q000276:immunology; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D010047:Ovalbumin / Q000276:immunology; D019887:Peanut Agglutinin / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000485:Allergens; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007782:Lactoglobulins; D019887:Peanut Agglutinin; D007073:Immunoglobulin E; D006632:Histamine; D010047:Ovalbumin