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Introduction: Immune response to cow's milk allergen (CMA) has been analyzed mostly using crude milk antigen or a mixture of various caseins. This study aimed to assess the changes in the immunological response against αS1-casein during oral immunotherapy (OIT) and to investigate the mechanism of tolerance., Methods: We have performed rush OIT to 39 patients with CMA and obtained the serum samples up to 3 years after OIT. Immunoglobulin E (IgE) and IgG4 antibodies specific to highly purified αS1-casein as well as passively-sensitized basophil activation were evaluated using the serial samples. Furthermore, we examined whether basophil activation led by the pre-OIT serum was suppressed by the post-OIT serum, or by the tolerant serum obtained from naturally outgrown patients., Results: Specific IgE to αS1-casein was significantly reduced after OIT. Specific IgG4 (sIgG4) to αS1-casein was also detected in most of the pre-OIT sera, which was not significantly increased after OIT. Activation of passively-sensitized basophils to αS1-casein was significantly reduced after 2 years (14% ± 19%) and 3 years (19% ± 18%) post-OIT compared with pre-OIT (%CD63 high basophils; 51% ± 27%). Furthermore, the addition of post-OIT or tolerant serum to pre-OIT serum significantly suppressed the basophil activation. This suppression was abrogated by washing the supernatant after passive sensitization, but not by depleting IgG antibodies from post-OIT or tolerant sera, nor by blocking FcγRIIb using an anti-FcγR antibody., Conclusions: αS1-casein-sIgG4 plays a minor role in tolerance mechanisms in cases of CMA; humoral factors other than antigen-sIgG4 may be involved., (© 2020 The Authors. Immunity, Inflammation and Disease published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Background and Purpose: The principal aim of this study was to clarify the clinical profile of pediatric patients with fruit allergies., Subjects and Methods: We assigned 265 pediatric patients with fruit allergies who were receiving outpatient treatment at Aichi Children's Health and Medical Center and 32 who underwent kiwi or banana oral food chal- lenge (OFC) test to an oral symptom group or a systemic symptom group and retrospectively examined their clinical profiles and prognosis from their medical records., Results: The most common cause of fruit allergy was kiwi (139 patients, 21% of all patients). Watermelon had the highest oral symptom induction rate (97%), whereas banana had the highest systemic reaction induction rate (46%). In the oral symptom group, the prevalence of hay fever was 54% and 66% of patients showed aller- gic reaction to multiple fruits. In contrast, in the systemic symptom group, the prevalence of pollen allergies was 24% and 77% of patients showed allergic reaction to a single fruit only. The results revealed that 65% of patients allergic to bananas had infant-onset allergy and seven among 20 patients were confirmed acquisition of tolerability by the OFC test., Conclusion: Our data suggest that there is a difference in the clinical profile and disease type between patients with oral symptoms and those with primarily systemic symptoms. It is important to differentiate between these patients for accurate diet guidance, safety management, and prognosis estimation.

Germline MUTYH mutations were investigated in 14 Japanese colorectal polyposis patients without germ line adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) gene mutations. Three patients had a heterozygous IVS10-2A>G MUTYH mutation. The onset of MUTYH-associated polyposis (MAP) occurs later than that of familial adenomatous polyposis with germline APC mutation. Thus, we compared the carrier frequency of MUTYH IVS10-2A>G heterozygote in the APC mutation negative cases with that in 115 controls over 70 years of age who showed no apparent clinical manifestations of cancer and claimed that they had no history of cancer at the time of enrollment. The frequency of IVS10-2A>G heterozygote in APC germline mutation negative polyposis patients was significantly higher than control subject (p = 0.012, Chi square test). Although the sample size is still too small to conclude, the IVS10-2A>G MUTYH heterozygote might add to the risk of developing germline APC mutation negative polyposis.

We report the case of a 6-month-old boy with transient renal dysfunction who had an intensified signal in the splenium of the corpus callosum on magnetic resonance imaging. He presented to hospital with fever and sudden disturbance of consciousness. Cerebrospinal fluid analysis did not show pleocytosis. The mild consciousness disturbance disappeared after 30 min, but the splenial signal persisted even after 8 days. Further, renal glucosuria, increased excretion of select amino acids, and abnormal fractional excretion of electrolytes were observed, indicating renal tubular dysfunction. The abnormal urinary findings spontaneously resolved by day 9 of hospitalization. The splenial lesion took 21 days to normalize. There were no signs of neurological complications 2 months later. This case suggests the possibility of renal involvement in splenial lesions., (© 2014 Japan Pediatric Society.)

We describe three cases of hereditary spherocytosis (HS) diagnosed using the eosin-5'-maleimide (EMA) binding test and discuss the relevance of the EMA binding test. In Japan, this test is not widely used because the prevalence of HS is low. This test is a valuable screening test for the diagnosis of HS., (© 2014 Japan Pediatric Society.)

We report the case of a 5-month-old female infant who had allergic enterocolitis with protein-losing enteropathy and had low birth weight. Until the age of 4 months, she was fed only breast milk and did not experience any related problems. When she was 5-months-old, she was admitted to our hospital with the chief complaints of vomiting and diarrhea. She had whole body edema, thoracic and abdominal ascites, and bloody stools. Laboratory examinations showed the presence of hypoalbuminemia, hypogammaglobulinemia, and an elevated CRP level. Subsequently, she was fed an elemental diet with enteral tube feeding, and her condition gradually improved. However, 2 weeks later, her symptoms reappeared, and therefore, she was admitted to the National Center for Child Health and Development. She underwent upper and colon endoscopies and was found out to have multiple inflammatory lesions in the area extending from the cecum to the rectum. The biopsy findings showed features of eosinophilic enterocolitis and she was diagnosed with allergic eosinophilic enterocolitis. Subsequently, an elemental formula that does not include soybean was used for feeding the infant. The symptoms resolved and her condition improved; currently, she is well and is showing normal development. We have reported this case because allergic enterocolitis is becoming a topic of concern.

Amino-functionalized graphene quantum dots (af-GQDs) with discrete molecular weights and specific edges were self-limitedly extracted from oxidized graphene sheet. Their optical properties can be precisely controlled only by the selective and quantitative functionalization at the edge sites. The af-GQDS exhibit bright colorful fluorescence under a single-wavelength excitation., (Copyright © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

A modification of the DeVega's tricuspid annuloplasty (TAP) in the treatment of tricuspid regurgitation (TR) is described. Using a double-ended 2-0 Ethibond suture buttered with a Teflon felt pledget, a double suture line is begun at the center of the annulus of the anterior tricuspid valve leaflet. The two suture lines 2 to 3 mm apart are run around the edge of the annular ring of the anterior and posterior tricuspid valve leaflets, going over the posteroseptal commissure by 1.5 cm. A tiny piece of Teflon felt is placed at the end of the sutures. The annulus is narrowed to sungly allow passage of a prove with a diameter of 28 or 30 mm. The tricuspid function is assessed by injecting saline into the right ventricle through the right atrium. Between March 1986 and July 1989, 28 patients with functional TR secondary to mitral valve diseases have been operated on by this technique. There are one early and one late deaths, none being related to tricuspid valve annuloplasty. All 26 survivors had a significant drop in right atrial pressure and an associated improvement in clinical status. Follow-up of the 27 patients who survived this TAP ranges from 2 to 38 months (mean 17 months). This annuloplasty is a safe, effective and readily teachable method for the surgical management of TR.

The blood pressure, heart rate, and plasma catecholamine (CA) response to standing and mental stresses were studied in 14 normotensive subjects with normotensive parents (PNT group), 14 normotensive subjects with hypertensive parent(s) (PHT group), and eight borderline hypertensive patients (BHT group). Mean basal plasma norepinephrine (NE) concentration in BHT group (302 +/- 94 pg/ml) and PHT group (289 +/- 167 pg/ml) were significantly higher than in PNT group (205 +/- 76 pg/ml). Significant differences in the mean basal plasma epinephrine (E) were found only between the PNT and BHT groups (22 +/- 12 vs 43 +/- 18 pg/ml, p less than 0.01). Both plasma NE and E increased significantly on standing in all groups. With mental stress, plasma E increased significantly, though plasma NE did not change significantly in all three groups. The mean changes in blood pressure, heart rate, and plasma CA in response to standing and mental stresses were not different in the three groups. However, a higher incidence (50%) of high blood pressure responders (greater than or equal to 20 mmHg in systolic blood pressure) to mental stress was found in the PHT group compared with PNT (14%) and BHT (12%). The high responders in the PHT group had significantly higher mean plasma E concentrations throughout the experiment. Also, their increases in plasma NE and E in response to mental stress were higher than those of the low responders. The results indicate that genetic predisposition to hypertension plays a significant role in determining plasma catecholamine levels and the responsiveness to stress, especially to mental stress.