Abstract
BackgroundAllergic rhinitis (AR) and allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) are prevalent allergic diseases and have significant impacts on patients’ daily life. Despite many studies on AR or ACD have been conducted separately, little is known about the immune responses in patients of AR combined with ACD and the interplay between AR and ACD. Our study compared various aspects of immune elements in patients with AR or/and ACD, aiming to characterize the immune responses in AR, ACD, and AR combined with ACD.MethodsA total of 57 patients diagnosed with AR or/and ACD and 28 healthy volunteers were included. AR patients were further divided into seasonal AR (SAR) and perennial AR (PAR). All subjects’ blood samples were taken to assess the concentration of immunoglobulins, complement C3, C4, autoantibodies and cytokines in serum by immunoturbidimetry, ELISA or Luminex200 platform. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were subjected to the analysis of lymphocyte subpopulations by flow cytometry.ResultsIt indicated that AR disease caused elevated levels of IgE, IgA, IgG, IgG4, as well as IL-4, IL-15, IL-8 and IL-6 in serum. AR patients possessed a decreased CD4/CD8 ratio and an increased proportion of memory CD4 + T-cell subset, with a skewed Th2 response and an enhanced CD8 + T-cell activation. Compared with patients with sole AR or ACD condition, AR + ACD patients presented with a significantly increased proportion of memory CD8 + T-cell subset and were prone to autoimmune disorders as indicated by the increased autoantibodies. The immune elements in patients with ACD only were least affected compared with those in other conditions. Additionally, seasonal or perennial AR patients exhibited different cytokine profiles and proportions of memory T-cell subsets.ConclusionsIn this study, we illuminated the respective characteristics of immune responses in AR, ACD, and AR combined with ACD. Meanwhile, we discovered that the PAR and SAR patients possessed different cytokine profiles and T-cell compartments. It suggested that these allergic conditions belong to different disease entities. Characterizing the detailed immune changes in these allergic diseases would help to develop proper treatments targeting particular immune elements in different allergic diseases.
Highlights
Allergic rhinitis (AR) and allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) are prevalent allergic diseases and have significant impacts on patients’ daily life
We discovered that the perennial AR (PAR) and seasonal AR (SAR) patients possessed different cytokine profiles and T-cell compartments
AR combined with ACD patients were defined as the AR + ACD group
Summary
Allergic rhinitis (AR) and allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) are prevalent allergic diseases and have significant impacts on patients’ daily life. Clinical presentations of ACD in acute phase include pruritus, dryness, erythema and scaling. It can develop into chronic inflammatory conditions upon continuous allergen exposure, and the exact mechanism remains unknown [3, 4]. Avoidance of allergens is one of the crucial measures for restraining atopic conditions of AR and ACD. While traditional drugs such as antihistamines and corticosteroids can relieve the symptoms, there is no known cure with only the allergen-specific immunotherapy (AIT) lighting a hope for complete remission [2, 6]. It is meaningful to investigate the exact immunological characteristics and the differences between AR and ACD, and to explore the mutual interplay between them when patients are inflicted with AR together with ACD
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