Eosinophils and eosinophil cationic protein in nasal lavages in allergen-induced hyperresponsiveness: effects of topical glucocorticosteroid treatment

• Published in: Allergy (Copenhagen) Vol. 44; no. 5; p. 342
• Main Authors: Andersson, M, Andersson, P, Venge, P, Pipkorn, U
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Denmark 01.07.1989
• Subjects: Administration, Topical; Adult; Anti-Inflammatory Agents - therapeutic use; Blood Proteins - metabolism; Budesonide; Clinical Trials as Topic; Double-Blind Method; Eosinophil Granule Proteins; Eosinophils - metabolism; Female; Glucocorticoids; Humans; Male; Nasal Mucosa - drug effects; Nasal Mucosa - metabolism; Pregnenediones - therapeutic use; Random Allocation; Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial - drug therapy; Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial - metabolism; Ribonucleases; Therapeutic Irrigation
• ISSN: 0105-4538; 1398-9995
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1398-9995.1989.tb00456.x

Airway challenges with allergen are frequently followed by an increase in responsiveness to both specific and unspecific stimuli. This phenomenon in the lower airways has been linked to the presence of a late phase response to allergen challenge. One of the hallmarks of the late phase response is a tissue infiltration of granulocytes, specifically the eosinophils. A hypothesis for the increase in responsiveness has been that local activation of these eosinophils with subsequent release of the toxic granular constituents leads to a decrease in the barrier function of the airway epithelium. The aim of the present study was to further explore this hypothesis. Ten patients with previously demonstrated nasal allergen-induced hyperresponsiveness participated in a double-blind cross-over study involving pretreatment for various periods with topical glucocorticosteroids. The patients were challenged intranasally with allergen on one day, rechallenge 24 h later and the increase in responsiveness noted. In a nasal lavage performed immediately prior to challenge the number of eosinophilic granulocytes and the level of eosinophilic cationic protein (ECP) was determined. As expected, the placebo-treated patients demonstrated an increase in nasal responsiveness at rechallenge accompanied by a tendency for an increase in eosinophils as well as ECP in the lavage preceding the rechallenge compared with the initial allergen challenge 24 h previously. The amount of ECP found in the lavage on the second day correlated with the TAME-esterase activity, a marker of ongoing inflammatory activity (r = 0.64; P less than 0.05) in the same lavage, suggesting participation of the eosinophilic granulocyte in the inflammatory response to allergen.