title: Immunological parameters associated with the development of allergic rhinitis: a preliminary prospective study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Many subjects are sensitized to Japanese cedar pollen but do not develop allergic rhinitis (AR). The aim of this study was to examine the immunologic parameters related to the development of AR in sensitized subjects.
  
  
  METHODS
  The subjects  were 33 adults who were sensitized to Japanese cedar pollen, but had not developed as of 2007. Cedar pollen-specific IgE (sIgE) and total IgE (tIgE) in serum, cedar pollen antigen (Cry j 1) Cry j-specific memory Th2 cell clone size, and the Cry j-specific induced regulatory  T cell (iTreg) level were examined before and after the season in 2008.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eight of the 33 subjects developed cedar pollinosis. The sIgE titers before the season in these eight subjects did not differ from those in the subjects who did not develop pollinosis, but  the titers after the season were significantly higher in the group that developed pollinosis. The sIgE/tIgE ratio increased in almost all subjects, but the ratio was significantly higher before the season in the subjects who developed pollinosis. Cry j-specific Th2 cells were detected  in all subjects, but the clone size only increased in those that developed pollinosis. The Cry j-specific iTreg population did not differ between the two groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A high sIgE/tIgE ratio before the season may be predictive of development of pollinosis,  and an increase in the allergen-specific Th2 clone size during the pollen season could be a biomarker for pollinosis. The role of allergen-specific iTreg cells in the development of pollinosis could not be clarified in this preliminary study.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasuhiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Uekusa
authors.forename: Ayako
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Inamine
authors.forename: Syuji
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yonekura
authors.forename: Shigetoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Horiguchi
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fujimura
authors.forename: Daijyu
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sakurai
authors.forename: Heizaburo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yamamoto
authors.forename: Homare
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: Toyoyuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hanazawa
authors.forename: Yoshitaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Okamoto
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000485:Allergens / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000276:immunology; D052179:Antigens, Plant / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000276:immunology*; D002452:Cell Count; D032485:Cryptomeria; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology; D008297:Male; D010865:Pilot Projects; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000276:immunology*; D011058:Pollen / Q000009:adverse effects; D011379:Prognosis; D006255:Rhinitis, Allergic, Seasonal / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology*; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000276:immunology*; D018418:Th2 Cells / Q000276:immunology*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000485:Allergens; D052179:Antigens, Plant; C065290:Cry j I protein, Cryptomeria japonica; D010940:Plant Proteins; D007073:Immunoglobulin E