Objective

To review the literature and discuss a hypothesis as to why most people do not have allergy. This hypothesis is dependent on the following 3 main components: (1) airborne allergens (eg, from pollen or mites) are weak antigens that induce a B-cell response only in immunologically most reactive subjects (ie, with atopy); (2) a roadblock to production of immunoglobulin E (IgE) is the T helper 2/interleukin 4 requirement for class switch to IgE; (3) activated germinal centers prevent the formation of mature IgE-switched B-cells, creating a second roadblock to IgE production.

Data Sources

Transgenic reporter mice and a cross-sectional human cohort.

Study Selections

From the mouse studies, we selected the data on histology and tissue-derived cell suspensions published by several groups in 2011 to 2014. From the human cohort, we selected our published microarray data on the levels of allergen-specific IgE and IgG in serum.

Results

The immune response to airborne atopic allergens entails both IgE and IgG antibodies rather than just an IgG or IgE response. However, as expected for an immune response without mature germinal centers, the specific IgG levels will be very low, typically in the ng/ml range.

Conclusion

Control of IgE production is not just through the T helper 2/interleukin 4–mediated class switch. Recent studies suggest that mature germinal centers are likely to provide protection against the development of allergy to airborne allergens, as well. This may explain why allergen exposure does not induce allergen-specific IgE in everyone.

中文翻译：

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生发中心能保护我们大多数人免于过敏吗？

客观的

回顾文献并讨论关于为什么大多数人没有过敏的假设。该假设取决于以下 3 个主要组成部分： (1) 空气传播的过敏原（例如，来自花粉或螨虫）是弱抗原，仅在免疫反应性最强的受试者（即特应性）中诱导 B 细胞反应；(2) 免疫球蛋白 E (IgE) 产生的障碍是 T 辅助细胞 2/白细胞介素 4 需要转换为 IgE；(3) 激活的生发中心阻止了成熟的 IgE 转换 B 细胞的形成，从而为 IgE 的产生创造了第二个障碍。

数据源

转基因报告小鼠和横断面人类队列。

研究选择

从小鼠研究中，我们选择了几个小组在 2011 年至 2014 年发表的组织学和组织来源细胞悬液的数据。从人类队列中，我们选择了我们发表的关于血清中过敏原特异性 IgE 和 IgG 水平的微阵列数据。

结果

对空气传播的特应性过敏原的免疫反应需要 IgE 和 IgG 抗体，而不仅仅是 IgG 或 IgE 反应。然而，正如对没有成熟生发中心的免疫反应所预期的那样，特异性 IgG 水平将非常低，通常在 ng/ml 范围内。

结论

IgE 产生的控制不仅仅是通过 T 辅助细胞 2/白细胞介素 4 介导的类别转换。最近的研究表明，成熟的生发中心也可能提供保护，防止对空气传播的过敏原过敏。这或许可以解释为什么接触过敏原不会在每个人中诱发过敏原特异性 IgE。