title: Local Effect of Neurotrophin-3 in Neuronal Inflammation of Allergic Rhinitis: Preliminary Report.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Allergic rhinitis is a common inflammatory nasal mucosal disease characterized by sneezing, watery nasal discharge, nasal obstruction and itching. Although allergen-specific antibodies play a main role in the allergic airway inflammation, neuronal inflammation may also contribute to the symptoms of allergic rhinitis. Neuronal inflammation is primarily caused by the stimulation of sensory nerve endings with histamine. It has been shown that neurotrophins may also have a role in allergic reactions and neuronal inflammation. Nerve growth factor, neurotrophin 3 (NT-3), neurotrophin 4/5 and brain-derived neurotrophic factor are members of the neurotrophin family. Although nerve growth factor and brain-derived neurotrophic factor are well studied in allergic rhinitis patients, the exact role of Neurotrophin-3 is not known.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the possible roles of neurotrophin-3 in allergic rhinitis patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Case-control study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Neurotrophin-3 levels were studied in the inferior turbinate and serum samples of 20 allergic rhinitis and 13 control patients. Neurotrophin-3 staining of nasal tissues was evaluated by immunohistochemistry and ELISA was used for the determination of serum Neurotrophin-3 levels.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Neurotrophin-3 staining scores were statistically higher in the study group than in the control patients (p=0.001). Regarding serum Neurotrophin-3 levels, no statistically significant difference could be determined between allergic rhinitis and control patients (p=0.156). When comparing the serum NT-3 levels with tissue staining scores, there were no statistically significant differences in the allergic rhinitis and control groups (p=0.254 for allergic rhinitis and p=0.624 for control groups).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We suggest that Neurotrophin-3 might affect the nasal mucosa locally without being released into the systemic circulation in allergic rhinitis patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Mersin University Faculty of Medicine, Mersin, Turkey.
authors.forename: Onur
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: İsmi
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Mersin University Faculty of Medicine, Mersin, Turkey.
authors.forename: Cengiz
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Özcan
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Mersin University Faculty of Medicine, Mersin, Turkey.
authors.forename: Tuba
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Karabacak
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Biochemistry, Mersin University Faculty of Medicine, Mersin, Turkey.
authors.forename: Gürbüz
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Polat
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Mersin University Faculty of Medicine, Mersin, Turkey.
authors.forename: Yusuf
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Vayisoğlu
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Gaziantep State Hospital, Gaziantep, Turkey.
authors.forename: Taylan
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Güçlütürk
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Mersin University Faculty of Medicine, Mersin, Turkey.
authors.forename: Kemal
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Görür
keywords: Airway; allergic rhinitis; inflammation; neuronal; neurotrophin-3; rhinitis