From Genes to Phenotypes: Suppl. 2, 2005 The Basis of Future Allergy Management, Proceedings of the 25th Symposium of the Collegium Internationale Allergologicum

Allergic diseases have dramatically increased in prevalence in recent decades. However, while the genetic basis and the mechanisms of the allergic reaction are becoming ever clearer to researchers, there is still a tremendous gap between research results and actual practice in many allergists' offices. This volume provides much-needed help. Every two years, 200 of the world's leading allergists gather for an intimate and friendly symposium organized by the Collegium Internationale Allergologicum to discuss cutting-edge results of allergy research and future therapeutic options. This volume collects a series of excellent papers presented there, covering topics such as gene-environment interaction, T cell regulation, basic mechanisms of effector cell function, mast cells, psychoneuroallergology, asthma, food allergy, eczema, drug reactions, diagnostics and the latest progress in pharmacotherapy, as well as nonspecific and specific immunotherapy.

Table of Contents:
Preface; Basic Mechanisms; * Allergy is in the Blood at Birth; * Interleukin-4/13-Induced Activation of STAT 6 is Regulated by SOCS; * Th1-Mediated Inflammation as a Potential Pathogenic Factor in Allergic Disease; * Healthy or Allergic Immune Response Characterized by Fine Balance Between Specific T Regulatory 1 and T Helper 2 Cells; * Indications for the Existence of an IgE Isotype - Specific Signal Transduction; * Differential Expression of IgA-Positive Plasma Cells in Palatine Tonsils of Bet v 1-Allergic Patients and Healthy Individuals; * Survivin - A Key Regulator of Neutrophil and Eosinophil Survival; * Expression of CD8-a on Human Monocytes and Alveolar Macrophages; * Autoimmunity and Allergy: A Bioinformatic Approach; Dendritic Cells; * Dendritic Cells and Regulatory T-Cells in the Allergic Immune Response and its Modulation; * Expression of High Affinity IgE Receptors on Skin- and Blood-Derived Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells in Inflammatory Skin Diseases; * M-DC8 Dendritic Cells as Potent Inducers of Th1 Polarized Immune Responses; * Characteristics of Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells in Patients with Atopic Dermatitis; Mast Cells; * Activation of SPHK 1 in Mast Cells by Tyrosine Kinase Lyn; * Comparative Database for Transcriptomes of Human and Mouse Inflammatory Cells; * Mast Cell Inhibition by a2-Adrenoceptor Agonists; * Effects of Cannabinoid Agonists on Histamine Release from Activated Human Skin Mast Cells; * Expression and Function of Inhibitory and Activatory Receptors on Mast Cells and Eosinophils: New Mechanisms in Mast Cell-Eosinophil Crosstalk; * Relaxin Inhibits Activation of Human Neutrophils in vitro by a Nitric-Oxide-Dependent Mechanism; Allergens; * Cloning, Expression, Characterization, and Skin Prick Testing of NADPH-Dependent Mannitol Dehydrogenase: A New Major Allergen of Cladosporium herbarum; * Cosensitization to Cockroach and Mite Is Not Explained by Tropomyosin Cross-Reactivity; * Can Chinese Elm Pollen Cause Asthma?; * Inhalation Allergy and Desensitization to a Cysteine Protease Allergen; * Apple Allergy: Different Patient Allergen Recognition Patterns Across Europe, Studied by Use of Recombinant Allergens; * Intracellular Targeting: A New Concept for the Development of Efficient Vaccines; * The Molecular Requirements for Allergenicity; Infection and Allergy; * Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor [gamma] Ligands Have Antiviral and Anti-Inflammatory Activity in the Course of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection; * Differences in Bifidobacterium Species in Early Infancy and Development of Allergy; * Comparison of Expression and Function of Toll-Like Receptors in Eosinophils and Neutrophils; * Human T-Cells of Atopic and Nonatopic Donors Are Activated by Staphylococcal [alpha]-Toxin; Skin, Nerves, and Allergy; * Increased Apoptosis of Circulating Memory/Effector Th1 Cells in Atopic Diseases as Mechanism for Th2 Predominance; * Reduced Number of Cytokine-Expressing Inflammatory Cells in AD After Topical Tacrolimus Treatment; * New Methods for Quantitative and Qualitative Assessment of Itch; * Expression of Two Neuropeptide Receptors, Calcitonin-Gene-Related Peptide, and Somatostatin in Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells from Patients with Atopic Dermatitis and Nonatopic Controls; * The Influence of Neuropeptides on Cytokine Production in Peripheral TCells in Atopic Dermatitis Patients with Acute and Chronic Lesions and in Controls; * Eotaxin-1 SNP Associations in Allergic Conjunctivitis; * Neurotrophins in Allergic Bronchial Asthma: Modulators of Immunological and Neuronal Plasticity; * Neuroimmunological Crosstalk in Atopic Dermatitis: Critical Role of Neurotrophins in Eosinophil Function; Asthma; * Kinetics of Cytokine Production by Human Lung Tissue; * 21-Year Longitudinal Study of Healthy Infants Correlates with Atopy, Allergic Disease, and Asthma (The RIFYL Study; * Angiogenesis and Remodeling of Airway Vasculature in Asthma; * Protease-Activated Receptor-2 Enhances Allergen-Induced Airway Inflammation and Airway Hyperresponsiveness; * Glucocorticoids Promote T Regulatory Cells in Asthma by Increasing FOXP3 Expression; * The Phenotype of Steroid-Dependent Severe Asthma Is Not Associated with Increased Lung Levels of Th-2 Cytokines; * Bronchial Smooth Muscle Cells Apoptosis in Airway Remodeling; Food Allergy; * In vitro Methods for Monitoring the Development of Clinical Tolerance to Foods; * In vitro Methods for Assessing the Potential Severity of Food Allergic Reactions; * Eosinophilic Esophagitis: New Clinical and Pathophysiological Insights; * Histamine Release for Determination of Systemically Absorbed Allergenic Proteins in Humans; * Proton Pump Inhibitors Promote Oral Sensitization to Hazelnut; * Oral Threshold Levels and in vivo Basophil Activation in Hazelnut Allergic Patients During Oral Provocation Tests; * Digestion-Sensitive Wheat Proteins Can Induce Food Allergy; Diagnostics; * What Can We Learn from the Ratio of IgG1/IgG4 Antibodies to Allergens?; * Immunoglobulin-Free Light Chains in Immediate and Delayed Hypersensitivity Reactions; * Expression of Plasma Cell Markers CD38, CD138, Intracellular IgE, and XBP-1 in the Plasmacytoid Cell Line U266; * Improvement of the in vitro Diagnostic of Natural Rubber Latex Allergy: Estimation of Cross-Reactivity Through Application of Recombinant and Natural Single Allergens; * Hypersensitivity to NSAID Drugs: A New Integrated Approach to Its Pathophysiological Understanding and Diagnosis; * Pollen-Associated Food Allergy: In vitro Diagnosis by Recombinant Allergens and CD63 Expression of Basophils; * Immediate Adverse Reactions to Cephalosporins: Study of in vitro Crossreactivity by Determining Specific IgE to Different Betalactams; Therapy; * Anti-Interleukin-5 in the Treatment of Hypereosinophilic Skin Diseases; * Lack of Availability of Epinephrine for First-Aid Treatment of Anaphylaxis Worldwide; * A Candidate Vaccine for Specific Immunotherapy in Latex Allergy: Hypoallergenic Variants of Hev b 6.01.; * Randomized Controlled Trial of Specific Immunotherapy on Allergic Inflammation in Atopic Dermatitis Patients with Sensitization to House Dust Mites; * Allergy Prophylaxis by DNA Vaccination Inhibits Specific IgE Response and Lung Pathologic Parameters in a Mouse Model; * Quality of Life and Compliance in Patients Allergic to Grass and Rye Pollen During a 3-Year Treatment with Specific Immunotherapy (The LQC Study); * Targeting M-Cells for Induction of a Th1-Immune Response in Allergic Mice; * Successful Mucosal Immunotherapy in Asthma Induces Tolerance and M. vaccae Potentiates IL-10-Related Tolerance in a Murine Asthma Model; * Molecular Basis of the Anti-IgE Therapy; * Inhibition of IgE-Facilitated by Allergen Presentation: A Longitudinal Study of Grass-Pollen Immunotherapy.

Review :
The Collegium Internationale Allergologicum (CIA) is a group of leading scientists and doctors from all over the world who meet every two years to present and discuss, in an outstanding symposium, their most recent unpublished research. The CIA is a "numerus clauses" organization with very selective criteria of admission. Only one contribution from each research group can be presented at CIA Symposia by group leaders or upon invitation. If you are not a member of the CIA but you wish to be part of this sophisticated club, the book From Genes to Phenotypes will allow you to be aware of data presented at the last CIA meeting held in Bornholm. Most symposia proceedings are quite heterogeneous in their contents. On the contrary, the book of H. Lowenstein, J. Bienenstock and J. Ring answers the need of including the 70 contributions into ten homogeneous sections which go from Basic Mechanisms of Allergy, Allergens, Allergy Regulatory and Effector Cells (dendritic cells and mast cells), News to Clinical Aspects such as Asthma, Food Allergy, Diagnostic and Therapy. The book is also immune from another defect of symposia proceedings, i.e. to be old at the time of publication. In fact, since all contributions presented at CIA meetings represent the most recent unpublished research from top centers, the volume published by Hogrefe & Huber becomes an update Year Review of the most recent and exciting allergy papers. In the road from genes to phenotypes the publication covers topics such as gene-environment interactions, T cell regulation, new molecules and receptors, signal transduction mechanisms of inflammatory cells, new therapeutic approaches to allergic diseases (anti IL-5, DNA vaccination, anti-IgE therapy, molecules which induce tolerance or immune deviation). Since each contribution is quite short (3-4 pages), the main message of it is emphasised and easily captured by readers. by Prof. Sergio Bonini