The allergens of Epicoccum nigrum link. I. Identification of the allergens by immunoblotting

Anu B. Dixit, Walter H. Lewis, H. James Wedner

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25 Scopus citations

Abstract

Two atmospheric isolates of Epicoccum nigrum (EN) were grown under sporulation conditions. Dialyzed extracts of spores, (>95% pure) and pure mycelia were used for skin testing, sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and immunoblotting. By skin testing, 49 of the 126 atopic patients were found to be sensitive to EN in St. Louis, Mo., and Corpus Christi, Texas, combined. On immunoblotting, which was performed on 17 sera, 44 bands (12.3 to 119.0 kd) were detected; six were unique to spore, four were unique to mycelium, and 34 were common to both. No single band bound IgE from all sera. The most frequent band corresponding to 42 kd occurred in 11 sera. Five other bands were recognized by more than one half, whereas the remainder bound fewer sera. All skin test-positive patients had positive immunoblots; the number of bands recognized varied from three to 25. Spore or mycelium-specific, as well as common bands were recognized by 13 of 17 sera. Two sera recognized only spore and mycelium-specific bands. Only spore-specific bands were bound by two sera. No strain differences were detected. The binding patterns were comparable in the sera from both St. Louis, Mo., and Corpus Christi, Texas. These data suggest that EN is a significant allergen in urban communities. Allergenic proteins occur in both spore and mycelium, suggesting that both must be included in the reagents for skin testing and immunotherapy.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)11-20
Number of pages10
JournalThe Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
Volume90
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 1992

Keywords

  • Epicoccum nigrum
  • IgE binding
  • SDS-PAGE
  • allergy
  • atmospheric isolates
  • immunoblotting
  • mold growth
  • mycelium
  • skin testing
  • spore

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