Allergology International最新文献

{"title":"A practical protocol for the identification of Schizophyllum commune in fungal cultures of respiratory specimens: A pilot study at a single center in Japan.","authors":"Yuma Fukutomi, Takashi Yaguchi, Takahito Toyotome, Akemi Saito, Yoshika Sekine, Tsuyoshi Oguma, Takashi Katsuno, Yosuke Kamide, Kiyoshi Sekiya, Masami Taniguchi, Koichiro Asano","doi":"10.1016/j.alit.2026.01.003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.alit.2026.01.003","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Although Schizophyllum commune is a common causative fungus of allergic bronchopulmonary mycosis, it is often underrecognized in clinical practice. This is because it rarely forms spores under routine culture conditions, typically appears as white, non-sporulating colonies indistinguishable from other fungi, and is frequently dismissed as a contaminant rather than subjected to molecular identification. To minimize the risk of being overlooked, we established a practical protocol for the identification of S. commune based on its ability to produce hydrogen sulfide.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>To evaluate the clinical utility of this protocol, we studied consecutive lower respiratory tract specimens collected for fungal culture from adult patients who visited a tertiary hospital for allergy and respirology. Fungal cultures were performed in accordance with this protocol between January 2023 and December 2024. We calculated the positive and negative predictive value of this protocol as a clinical test for identifying S. commune by detecting genetic analysis-proven S. commune as the reference outcome.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Overall, 196 specimens were assessed during the study period. Based on the protocol, 19 specimens (10 %) were diagnosed as \"a specimen CONTAINING S. commune.\" All these specimens contained genetically-proven S. commune (positive predictive value: 100 %). S. commune was not recovered from any specimens that the protocol diagnosed as \"NOT containing S. commune\" (negative predictive value: 100 %).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This protocol enables the efficient and cost-effective detection of S. commune in clinical laboratories in a general medical facility, potentially reducing the underdiagnosis of S. commune-related allergic airway diseases and improving medical resource use.</p>","PeriodicalId":48861,"journal":{"name":"Allergology International","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-01-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146097461","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Metabolome-based severity assessment of seasonal allergic rhinitis using nasal secretions.","authors":"Hiroki Ishii, Kentaro Yoshimura, Daiju Sakurai","doi":"10.1016/j.alit.2026.01.001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.alit.2026.01.001","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48861,"journal":{"name":"Allergology International","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-01-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146094668","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"5-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid and 12-hydroxyeicosapentaenoic acid regulate basophil and mast cell activation and basophil recruitment in chronic spontaneous urticaria.","authors":"Mana Ito, Yoshimi Miki, Shota Toyoshima, Maho Tagui, Koremasa Hayama, Hideki Fujita, Yoshitaka Taketomi, Makoto Murakami, Yoshimichi Okayama","doi":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.12.005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.alit.2025.12.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The underlying pathomechanisms of wheal reaction enlargement in chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) remain largely unclear. We hypothesized that the activation of mast cells (MCs) and recruitment of basophils to locally inflamed skin would be enhanced by lipid mediators (LMs) following initial skin MC activation. This study aimed to identify the LMs responsible for enhancing the aggregation of IgE-mediated MC activation and basophil chemotaxis.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We enrolled 77 CSU patients and 36 non-atopic control (NC) subjects. Lipid profiling of plasma from these subjects was performed using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry. We compared LMs before and after omalizumab treatment between responders and non-responders.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The concentration of 5-lipoxygenase-mediated LMs was significantly higher in the plasma obtained from patients than in the plasma obtained from NC subjects. The stepwise model demonstrated that 5-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (HETE) (odds ratio, 3.34; 95 % confidence interval, 1.91-5.86; p = 0.0001) was the strongest independent marker of CSU. Here, 5-HETE significantly upregulated IgE-dependent basophil and MC activation. 12-hydroxyeicosapentaenoic acid (HEPE) demonstrated statistically significant correlations between changes in basophil counts and changes in the LM levels before and after omalizumab administration (p = 0.0146). Additionally, 12-HEPE significantly inhibits TNF-α/IFN-β-induced CCL2 mRNA expression in human keratinocytes. Furthermore, 12-HEPE showed a significant increase in concentration after omalizumab treatment in responders (p = 0.0095), but not in non-responders.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>In conclusion, 5-HETE and 12-HEPE may regulate IgE-mediated activation of MCs and basophils and recruitment of basophils in the CSU, respectively, suggesting that these LMs may be involved in the enlargement of wheal reactions.</p>","PeriodicalId":48861,"journal":{"name":"Allergology International","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145918927","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"IgE reactivity to a walnut gibberellin-regulated protein in a patient with walnut anaphylaxis: A case report","authors":"Yuji Mori ,&nbsp;Keiko Momma ,&nbsp;Hikaru Sugita ,&nbsp;Toya Kono ,&nbsp;Nobuaki Okumura ,&nbsp;Hiroshi Narita ,&nbsp;Yasuto Kondo","doi":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.11.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.11.002","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48861,"journal":{"name":"Allergology International","volume":"75 1","pages":"Pages 165-167"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145688570","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Clinical remission in asthma and related diseases: Current landscape and future perspectives","authors":"Hiroyuki Nagase (Associate Editor, Allergology International)","doi":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.12.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.12.002","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48861,"journal":{"name":"Allergology International","volume":"75 1","pages":"Pages 1-2"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145886347","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Uneven distribution of air trapping and its impact on physical activity in patients with asthma","authors":"Ayumi Fukatsu-Chikumoto ,&nbsp;Tsunahiko Hirano ,&nbsp;Hiroshi Iwamoto ,&nbsp;Taiga Kobayashi ,&nbsp;Yoshie Kunihiro ,&nbsp;Keiko Doi ,&nbsp;Kazuki Hamada ,&nbsp;Yoriyuki Murata ,&nbsp;Toshiaki Utsunomiya ,&nbsp;Keiji Oishi ,&nbsp;Maki Asami-Noyama ,&nbsp;Nobutaka Edakuni ,&nbsp;Kazuma Kawamoto ,&nbsp;Toshihito Otani ,&nbsp;Naoko Higaki ,&nbsp;Yoshihiro Amano ,&nbsp;Mayuka Yamane ,&nbsp;Naoya Tanabe ,&nbsp;Akihito Yokoyama ,&nbsp;Takeshi Isobe ,&nbsp;Kazuto Matsunaga","doi":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.06.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.06.002","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>The underlying pathophysiology of varying physical activity levels in patients with asthma remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the association between physical activity and air trapping, identified via chest computed tomography, in patients with asthma.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>The following computed tomography analyses were used to evaluate air trapping in two cohorts (Cohort 1: 27 patients with asthma, 12 healthy individuals; Cohort 2: 90 patients with asthma, 43 healthy individuals): density analysis, focusing on air trapping characteristics during expiration, and parametric response mapping (PRM), which integrates inspiratory and expiratory computed tomography scans to categorize air trapping into small airway disease (PRM^SAD) and low-attenuation areas. Mucus plug scores were also measured.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Patients with asthma exhibited significantly reduced activity levels compared with healthy participants at intensities of ≥2, ≥3, and ≥4 metabolic equivalents (METs) in both cohorts. Among patients with asthma, air trapping was significantly associated with decreased physical activity of ≥4 METs, corresponding to moderate-to-vigorous exercise intensity. Among the air-trapping components, increased PRM^SAD significantly contributed to reduced physical activity at ≥4 METs. Regarding the relationship between PRM^SAD and physical activity for each lung lobe, elevated PRM^SAD in the left upper lobe played a significant role in decreasing physical activity. The presence of mucus plugs was associated with elevated PRM^SAD.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>The uneven distribution of air trapping in the lungs of patients with asthma, particularly in the upper lobe, was linked to reduced moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity and was partially attributable to small airway obstruction caused by mucus plugs.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48861,"journal":{"name":"Allergology International","volume":"75 1","pages":"Pages 62-70"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144754942","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Current definition of remission in eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA) and future perspectives","authors":"Hiromichi Tamaki","doi":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.10.004","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.10.004","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA) is a rare systemic vasculitis for which achieving remission is the primary therapeutic goal. Historically, remission in EGPA was defined by the absence of active vasculitis, typically a Birmingham Vasculitis Activity Score (BVAS) of 0. However, this definition is insufficient as it overlooks the significant morbidity associated with long-term glucocorticoid (GC) therapy. Recent evidence highlights that even low-dose GCs carry substantial risks, challenging the traditional acceptance of remission on GC. This review summarizes the evolution of the remission concept in EGPA, highlighting the paradigm shift seen in recent pivotal clinical trials for biologics, which have incorporated stringent GC dose thresholds (e.g., prednisone ≤4 mg/day) into their primary endpoints. This reflects a growing consensus that minimizing GC exposure is a crucial component of a successful treatment outcome. Further, this review explores potential future components for remission criteria, such as organ-specific activity measures and patient-reported outcomes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48861,"journal":{"name":"Allergology International","volume":"75 1","pages":"Pages 26-31"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145514523","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Unsupervised identification of asthma symptom subtypes supports treatable traits approach","authors":"Kazuki Hamada ,&nbsp;Takeshi Abe ,&nbsp;Keiji Oishi ,&nbsp;Yoriyuki Murata ,&nbsp;Tsunahiko Hirano ,&nbsp;Takahide Hayano ,&nbsp;Masahiko Nakatsui ,&nbsp;Yoshiyuki Asai ,&nbsp;Kazuto Matsunaga","doi":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.06.004","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.06.004","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Heterogeneity of asthma requires a personalized therapeutic approach. However, objective measurements, such as spirometry and fraction of exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) for implementing treatable traits approach, are limited in low- and middle-income countries and non-specialist settings. To implement precision medicine even with minimal resources, we developed an algorithm using unsupervised machine learning techniques that estimates key treatable traits (airflow limitation, type 2 [T2] inflammation, and frequent exacerbations) based on an asthma patient-reported outcome (PRO).</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We applied hierarchical clustering and Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection (UMAP) to Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ)-5 including five residual symptoms from two asthma cohorts (the discovery cohort with 1697 patients and validation cohort with 157 patients).</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>We identified five symptom clusters, characterized by key treatable traits: Cluster 1, minimal asthma symptoms; Cluster 2, a little symptom, mild airflow limitation; Cluster 3, predominant shortness of breath and wheezes, airflow limitation; Cluster 4, predominant morning symptoms and nocturnal awakening, T2 inflammation; and Cluster 5, all symptoms severe, airflow limitation, T2 inflammation and frequent exacerbations. The UMAP projections of ACQ-5 (five-dimensional) to two-dimensions allowed to visualize datapoints and clusters, which visually revealed that patients with poorly-controlled asthma were divided into Clusters 3, 4 and 5. These results were externally validated in an independent cohort.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Based on asthma PRO data, the developed algorithm categorized asthma patients into five symptom-based subtypes that provide insights into key treatable traits. Our data-driven digital health approach will extend precision medicine of asthma to medical facilities even in resource-constrained settings.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48861,"journal":{"name":"Allergology International","volume":"75 1","pages":"Pages 92-102"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144745596","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effects of sublingual allergen immunotherapy on non-targeted allergen-induced immune responses","authors":"Kazuyuki Nakagome ,&nbsp;Tomoyuki Soma ,&nbsp;Takahiro Uchida ,&nbsp;Ryu Sekiya ,&nbsp;Takehito Kobayashi ,&nbsp;Reina Ishii ,&nbsp;Tatsuhiko Uno ,&nbsp;Kazuki Katayama ,&nbsp;Hidetoshi Iemura ,&nbsp;Erika Naito ,&nbsp;Yuki Hoshino ,&nbsp;Yoshitaka Uchida ,&nbsp;Makoto Nagata","doi":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.09.006","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.09.006","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48861,"journal":{"name":"Allergology International","volume":"75 1","pages":"Pages 158-161"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145886296","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Gut microbiota contributes to the maintenance of sublingually induced regulatory T cells and tolerance in mice","authors":"Saka Winias ,&nbsp;Kanan Bando ,&nbsp;Boonnapa Temtanapat ,&nbsp;Masato Nakano ,&nbsp;Masahiro Saito ,&nbsp;Shunji Sugawara ,&nbsp;Mitsuko Komatsu ,&nbsp;Akiyoshi Hirayama ,&nbsp;Shinji Fukuda ,&nbsp;Takaaki Abe ,&nbsp;Kentaro Mizuta ,&nbsp;Masahiro Iikubo ,&nbsp;Yukinori Tanaka","doi":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.06.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.alit.2025.06.003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) involves the induction of allergen-specific regulatory T (Treg) cells in the oral mucosa-draining submandibular lymph nodes (LNs). However, their subsequent maintenance remains unclear, including the involvement of the gut microbiota. We aimed to investigate where and how SLIT-induced Treg cells are maintained to ensure tolerance to allergens.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We used a mouse model of prophylactic SLIT with ovalbumin as the allergen. SLIT-induced tolerance was assessed by suppressing delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) responses. The distribution of SLIT-induced Treg cells was determined based on their ability to suppress the DTH response upon adoptive transfer. The involvement of LNs and gut microbiota was assessed by the surgical removal of LNs and antibiotic depletion of the gut microbiota, respectively.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Suppression of DTH by SLIT was impaired by surgical removal of submandibular LNs prior to SLIT. Functional SLIT-induced Treg cells were detected in submandibular LNs and gut-draining mesenteric LNs, however, not in skin-draining LNs or the spleen. Intriguingly, the surgical removal of mesenteric LNs alone after SLIT was sufficient to abolish the suppressive effect of SLIT. Gut microbiota depletion by antibiotic treatment after SLIT also abolished the suppressive effect of SLIT and impaired the maintenance of functional SLIT-induced Treg cells in mesenteric LNs.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Functional SLIT-induced Treg cells were maintained in mesenteric LNs in a gut microbiota-dependent manner. Thus, this study revealed a previously unrecognized role of the gut microbiota in SLIT and provided a rationale for targeting the gut environment to improve the efficacy and prolong the maintenance of SLIT.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48861,"journal":{"name":"Allergology International","volume":"75 1","pages":"Pages 71-80"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144769209","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}