effects of air pollutants on development of allergic immune responses in the respiratory tract空气污染对发展的影响呼吸道过敏免疫反应.pdfVIP

Clinical Developmental Immunology, June–December 2003 Vol. 10 (2–4), pp. 119–126 Effects of Air Pollutants on Development of Allergic Immune Responses in the Respiratory Tract LAUREL J. GERSHWIN* School of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, University of California at Davis, 2019 Haring Hall, Davis, CA 95616, USA The increased incidence of allergic asthma in the human population worldwide has stimulated many explanatory theories. A concomitant decrease in air quality leads to epidemiological and laboratory- based studies to demonstrate a link between air pollutants and asthma. Specifically, ozone, environmental tobacco smoke, and diesel exhaust are associated with enhancement of respiratory allergy to inhaled allergens. This review summarizes the state of the knowledge, both human epidemiology and laboratory animal experiments, linking air pollution to allergy. Critical issues involve development of the lung and the fetal immune response, and the potential for substances like ozone and ETS in the air to modulate early immune responses with lifelong consequences. Keywords: Air pollution; Asthma; Developmental immunology; IgE INTRODUCTION remodeling. Most forms of asthma are found in individuals that are said to be “atopic”, meaning that The prevalence of allergic diseases, such as rhinitis they have a genetic propensity to produce IgE antibodies (“hay fever”) and asthma