Alper Tunga Özdemir

Conference 2024 Pre-Recorded

Talk Title

Detection of House Dust Mite Allergen Der-P1 Specific B Cells by Flow-Cytometry

Authors and Affiliations

Rabia Bilge Özgül Özdemir1, Alper Tunga Özdemir 2, Cengiz Kırmaz3, Mustafa Öztatlıcı4, Kamil Vural5
1. Department of Clinical Immunology and Allergy, Manisa City Hospital, Manisa, Turkey
2. Department of Medical Biochemistry, Merkezefendi State Hospital, Manisa, Turkey
3. Department of Clinical Immunology and Allergy, Manisa Celal Bayar University, Manisa, Turkey
4. Department of Histology and Embryology, Islam Science and Technology University, Gaziantep, Turkey
5. Department of Pharmacology, Manisa Celal Bayar University, Manisa, Turkey

Abstract

Background

The main mechanism in the emergence of symptoms in allergic diseases can be summarized as the binding of allergen specific IgE antibodies to Mast and Basophil cells and the sudden and high secretion of molecules with high biological activity such as leukotriene, histamine and bradykinin from them. Detection of allergen-specific IgE-producing B lymphocytes and their relationship with the pathogenesis of the disease will pave the way for a better understanding of allergic diseases and the development of new approaches for treatment. With this project, it is aimed to develop a method that enables the detection of B lymphocytes, which produce specific antibody to house dust mite allergen Der p1, which is one of the most common causes of allergy, by flow cytometry method.

Methods

Der-p1 specific B lymphocytes were detected flow-cytometrically in whole blood samples taken from allergic patients with house dust mite allergy and healthy subjects without any allergy history, using tetramers formed with peptide mimotopes specific to Der-p1 molecule, which is a house dust mite specific allergen.

Results

When the B lymphocyte frequencies of the patients and controls were compared, no significant difference was found (p=0.35), but when the CD19+IgE+ cell frequencies were compared, we found that the IgE positive B cell levels of the patient group were significantly higher (p=0.0117). In flow cytometry analyzes performed with Der p1 specific mimotope tetramers (MT) we developed, we found that MT1 (KGIPNTKAP), MT2 (DMFQIGKYG) and MT3 (KGTTGVRNT) positive B cell frequencies were significantly higher in the patient group compared to the control group (p=0.0193, p=0.0007 and p=0.0007 respectively).

Conclusions

In our findings, we showed that B cell frequencies labeled with MT1, MT2 and MT3 mimotope tetramers were extremely and significantly higher in the patient group. With this approach, it is possible to monitor the response of patients to the treatments applied and even to develop eliminating treatments targeting allergen-specific B cells. In the light of the data, we obtained from this study, we plan to use the mimotope tetramer technology, which we developed in larger and controlled patient groups, in different projects in terms of diagnosis, treatment follow-up and use in cellular treatments.