Genetic Mechanisms in Aspirin-Exacerbated Respiratory Disease

Aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease (AERD) refers to the development of bronchoconstriction in asthmatics following the exposure to aspirin or other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. The key pathogenic mechanisms associated with AERD are the overproduction of cysteinyl leukotrienes (CysLTs) and increased CysLTR1 expression in the airway mucosa and decreased lipoxin and PGE2 synthesis. Genetic studies have suggested a role for variability of genes in disease susceptibility and the response to medication. Potential genetic biomarkers contributing to the AERD phenotype include HLA-DPB1, LTC4S, ALOX5, CYSLT, PGE2, TBXA2R, TBX21, MS4A2, IL10, ACE, IL13, KIF3A, SLC22A2, CEP68, PTGER, and CRTH2 and a four-locus SNP set composed of B2ADR, CCR3, CysLTR1, and FCER1B. Future areas of investigation need to focus on comprehensive approaches to identifying biomarkers for early diagnosis

Oral Muscle Relaxant May Induce Immediate Allergic Reactions

Eperisone and afloqualone act by relaxing both skeletal and vascular smooth muscles to improve circulation and suppress pain reflex. These drugs are typically prescribed with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) as painkillers. However, there have been no reports on serious adverse reactions to oral muscle relaxants; and this is the first report to describe three allergic reactions caused by eperisone and afloqualone. All three patients had histories of allergic reactions after oral intake of multiple painkillers, including oral muscle relaxants and NSAIDs, for chronic muscle pain. An open-label oral challenge test was performed with each drug to confirm which drugs caused the systemic reactions. All patients experienced the same reactions within one hour after oral intake of eperisone or afloqualone. The severity of these reactions ranged from laryngeal edema to hypotension. To confirm that the systemic reaction was caused by eperisone or afloqualone, skin prick testing and intradermal skin tests were performed with eperisone or afloqualone extract in vivo, and basophil activity tests were performed after stimulation with these drugs in vitro. In one patient with laryngeal edema, the intradermal test with afloqualone extract had a positive result, and CD63 expression levels on basophils increased in a dose-dependent manner by stimulation with afloqualone. We report three allergic reactions caused by oral muscle relaxants that might be mediated by non-immunoglobulin E-mediated responses. Since oral muscle relaxants such as eperisone and afloqualone are commonly prescribed for chronic muscle pain and can induce severe allergic reactions, we should prescribe them carefully

Occupational Rhinitis Induced by Capsaicin

Capsaicin is the spice component of red pepper. It can be easily inhaled, inducing a reproducible cough and provokes a secretory response from the human nasal mucosa. To date, there has been no report of occupational rhinitis (OR) caused by capsaicin. We report the case of a 44-year-old female mill worker who developed occupational rhinitis after 4 years of exposure to capsaicin. She developed nasal congestion, rhinorrhea, and itchy nose, which were all aggravated upon exposure at the workplace. The patient had negative responses to all common inhalant allergens, including capsaicin, by skin prick tests. The nasal provocation test with capsaicin showed that the nasal symptom score and eosinophil count increased 10 minutes after the provocation and decreased after 1 to 3 hours; no significant response was noted to house dust mite allergen. The patient's work-related rhinitis improved 1 month after she relocated and started pharmacological treatment. To our knowledge, this is the first case of OR caused by capsaicin exposure in the workplace. We provide evidence suggesting that OR may be mediated by a non-immunological mechanism

A Case of Occupational Rhinitis Caused by Rice Powder in the Grain Industry

Rice is the major staple food in a large part of the world, especially in Asia. Hypersensitivity reactions to rice are rare. Moreover, cases of occupational allergies induced by inhalation of rice powder are uncommon. We report a 31-year-old male with work-related rhinitis and conjunctivitis symptoms caused by occupational exposure to rice powder in the grain industry. He showed positive responses to rice extracts on a skin prick test, and a high level of serum specific IgE to rice was detected by ELISA. Occupational rhinitis was confirmed by a nasal provocation test with rice extracts. An IgE ELISA inhibition test showed cross-creativity between rice and various grass pollen extracts. These findings suggest that the inhalation of rice powder can induce IgE-mediated occupational rhino-conjunctivitis, which may be derived from cross-reactivity to major grass pollens

Identification of a novel antiapoptotic protein that antagonizes ASK1 and CAD activities

Diverse stimuli initiate the activation of apoptotic signaling pathways that often causes nuclear DNA fragmentation. Here, we report a new antiapoptotic protein, a caspase-activated DNase (CAD) inhibitor that interacts with ASK1 (CIIA). CIIA, by binding to apoptosis signal-regulating kinase 1 (ASK1), inhibits oligomerization-induced ASK1 activation. CIIA also associates with CAD and inhibits the nuclease activity of CAD without affecting caspase-3–mediated ICAD cleavage. Overexpressed CIIA reduces H2O2- and tumor necrosis factor-α–induced apoptosis. CIIA antisense oligonucleotides, which abolish expression of endogenous CIIA in murine L929 cells, block the inhibitory effect of CIIA on ASK1 activation, deoxyribonucleic acid fragmentation, and apoptosis. These findings suggest that CIIA is an endogenous antagonist of both ASK1- and CAD-mediated signaling

Multifunctional Smart Ball Sensor for Wireless Structural Health Monitoring in a Fire Situation

A variety of sensor systems have been developed to monitor the structural health status of buildings and infrastructures. However, most sensor systems for structural health monitoring (SHM) are difficult to use in extreme conditions, such as a fire situation, because of their vulnerability to high temperature and physical shocks, as well as time-consuming installation process. Here, we present a smart ball sensor (SBS) that can be immediately installed on surfaces of structures, stably measure vital SHM data in real time and wirelessly transmit the data in a high-temperature fire situation. The smart ball sensor mainly consists of sensor and data transmission module, heat insulator and adhesive module. With the integrated device configuration, the SBS can be strongly attached to the target surface with maximum adhesion force of 233.7-N and stably detect acceleration and temperature of the structure without damaging the key modules of the systems even at high temperatures of up to 500 degrees C while ensuring wireless transmission of the data. Field tests for a model pre-engineered building (PEB) structure demonstrate the validity of the smart ball sensor as an instantly deployable, high-temperature SHM system. This SBS can be used for SHM of a wider variety of structures and buildings beyond PEB structures