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  • Title: Studies on alternaria allergens. IV. Comparative biochemical and immunological studies of commercial Alternaria tenuis Batches.
    Author: Vijay HM, Huang H, Young NM, Bernstein IL.
    Journal: Int Arch Allergy Appl Immunol; 1984; 74(3):256-61. PubMed ID: 6427119.
    Abstract:
    The biochemical and immunological characteristics of a series of commercial samples of Alternaria tenuis were examined, including samples from two different companies. There was a considerable variation in the biochemical parameters such as the gel filtration profile on Sephadex G-100, isoelectric focussing pattern and immunodiffusion precipitin band pattern. The content and proportion of two high molecular weight polysaccharides, one a galactomannan and the other a glucan, also varied greatly. In contrast, the allergenic properties of the samples were more consistent. In rat IgE passive cutaneous anaphylaxis tests, extensive cross-reactivity was observed among batches from the same company, but this cross-reactivity was weaker when batches from the two companies were compared. In direct radioallergosorbent tests (RAST) the samples showed similar reactivities, but RAST inhibition tests showed a 40-fold range in activity between samples from one company and 55-fold between batches from the two sources. It was found that the proportions of the major A. tenuis allergen and a related hypoallergenic antigen in the samples were relatively constant, hence RAST inhibition can be used as a measure of allergenic potency despite the presence of this cross-reacting antigen. The lack of correlation between allergenic and biochemical properties of the various samples suggest that a simple biochemical test is unlikely to be a satisfactory replacement for the RAST inhibition assay in standardizing A. tenuis extracts.
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