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Food allergy (FA) in young children is often associated with eczema, frequently directed to egg/cow milk allergens and has a higher chance of resolution, while FA that persists in older children has less chance of resolution and is less clearly associated with atopy. Children with FA (n = 62) and healthy controls (n = 28) were categorized into "younger" (≤5 years) and "older" (>5 years). Mass spectrometry-based untargeted metabolomic profiling as wells as cytokine profiling were performed on plasma samples in FA children in each age group. Younger FA children manifested unique alterations in bile acids, polyamine metabolites and chemokines associated with Th2 responses, while older FA children displayed pronounced changes in long chain fatty acids, acylcarnitines and proinflammatory cytokines. FA children of different ages manifest unique metabolic changes which may reflect at least in part pathogenic mechanisms and environmental influences operative at different time points in the disease course. • Distinct metabolomic profiles characterize recently established food allergy as compared to persistent food allergy. • Food allergy in young children is associated with marked alteration of microbiome-related metabolites, including polyamines. • Food allergy in older children is associated with marked alteration of lipid mediators, including PUFAs and acyl carnitines. • Polyamines are uniquely altered in early stages of food allergy and represent novel candidate food allergy biomarkers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessing the spatial distribution of hydraulic conductivity ( K ) in natural aquifers is fundamental to predict the spatio-temporal evolution of solutes, a process that is mainly controlled by the heterogeneity of K . In sedimentary aquifers, the vertical variations of K are typically more relevant than the horizontal ones in controlling the plume evolution at the local scale; such K vertical distributions can be inferred by combining the Lagrangian formulation of transport with the assimilation of tracer test data via the ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF). In this work, the data for the assimilation procedure are provided by monitoring tracer tests with electrical resistivity tomography (ERT). Our main objective is to show the possibility of directly using ERT data by assimilating the solute travel times, instead of the concentration values, thus avoiding the need for a petrophysical law. The methodology is applied to both a synthetic and a real test case and gives a satisfactory retrieval of the K field distribution, as well as of the solute evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a case of a 14-year-old adolescent female who was presented for evaluation of hypersensitivity to glatiramer acetate. After several tests, she was found to have an immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated allergy to glatiramer acetate. A desensitization protocol was formulated with a gradual dose of escalation period to address the problem.

Background Exhaled breath temperature has been proposed as a surrogate marker for the evaluation of airway inflammation in asthmatic patients. Objective The aim of the present study was to extend the investigation of exhaled air temperature as a means for the evaluation of airway inflammation using a professionally developed instrument. Methods Fifty-seven children, 41 allergic mild asthmatics and 16 healthy controls have been evaluated. They underwent exhaled air temperature and lung function measurement. The asthmatic children also underwent exhaled nitric oxide measurement, and hypertonic saline sputum induction for the evaluation of eosinophil (EOS) percentage. Results The level of exhaled temperature was significantly higher in asthmatics than in controls, being 30.18±0.14°C vs. 27.47±0.24°C ( P<0.001). In asthmatic children, a positive relationship was observed between exhaled air temperature and both exhaled nitric oxide ( r=0.39; P=0.01) and EOS percentage in samples from induced sputum (ρ=0.53; P=0.04). Conclusion The data from the present study support the hypotheses that exhaled breath temperature is related to the degree of airway inflammation in asthma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]