From upright to upside-down presentation: A spatio-temporal ERP study of the parametric effect of rotation on face and house processing

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>While there is a general agreement that picture-plane inversion is more detrimental to face processing than to other seemingly complex visual objects, the origin of this effect is still largely debatable. Here, we address the question of whether face inversion reflects a quantitative or a qualitative change in processing mode by investigating the pattern of event-related potential (ERP) response changes with picture plane rotation of face and house pictures. Thorough analyses of topographical (Scalp Current Density maps, SCD) and dipole source modeling were also conducted.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We find that whilst stimulus orientation affected in a similar fashion participants' response latencies to make face and house decisions, only the ERPs in the N170 latency range were modulated by picture plane rotation of faces. The pattern of N170 amplitude and latency enhancement to misrotated faces displayed a curvilinear shape with an almost linear increase for rotations from 0° to 90° and a dip at 112.5° up to 180° rotations. A similar discontinuity function was also described for SCD occipito-temporal and temporal current foci with no topographic distribution changes, suggesting that upright and misrotated faces activated similar brain sources. This was confirmed by dipole source analyses showing the involvement of bilateral sources in the fusiform and middle occipital gyri, the activity of which was differentially affected by face rotation.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our N170 findings provide support for both the quantitative and qualitative accounts for face rotation effects. Although the qualitative explanation predicted the curvilinear shape of N170 modulations by face misrotations, topographical and source modeling findings suggest that the same brain regions, and thus the same mechanisms, are probably at work when processing upright and rotated faces. Taken collectively, our results indicate that the same processing mechanisms may be involved across the whole range of face orientations, but would operate in a non-linear fashion. Finally, the response tuning of the N170 to rotated faces extends previous reports and further demonstrates that face inversion affects perceptual analyses of faces, which is reflected within the time range of the N170 component.</p

Birth cohorts in asthma and allergic diseases: Report of a NIAID/NHLBI/MeDALL joint workshop

Population-based birth cohorts on asthma and allergies increasingly provide new insights into the development and natural history of the diseases. Over 130 birth cohorts focusing on asthma and allergy have been initiated in the last 30 years. A NIAID (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases), NHLBI (National Heart Lung and Blood Institute), MeDALL (Mechanisms of the Development of Allergy, Framework Programme 7 of the European Commission) joint workshop was held in Bethesda, MD, USA September 11–12, 2012 with 3 objectives (1) documenting the knowledge that asthma/allergy birth cohorts have provided, (2) identifying the knowledge gaps and inconsistencies and (3) developing strategies for moving forward, including potential new study designs and the harmonization of existing asthma birth cohort data. The meeting was organized around the presentations of 5 distinct workgroups: (1) clinical phenotypes, (2) risk factors, (3) immune development of asthma and allergy, (4) pulmonary development and (5) harmonization of existing birth cohorts. This manuscript presents the workgroup reports and provides web links (AsthmaBirthCohorts.niaid.nih.gov or www.medall-fp7.eu) where the reader will find tables describing the characteristics of the birth cohorts included in this report, type of data collected at differing ages, and a selected bibliography provided by the participating birth cohorts

Obstructive Lung Disease and Exposure to Burning Biomass Fuel in the Indoor Environment

It is estimated that up to half of the world's population burns biomass fuel (wood, crop residues, animal dung and coal) for indoor uses such as cooking, lighting and heating. As a result, a large proportion of women and children are exposed to high levels of household air pollution (HAP). The short and long term effects of these exposures on the respiratory health of this population are not clearly understood. On May 9-11, 2011 NIH held an international workshop on the "Health Burden of Indoor Air Pollution on Women and Children," in Arlington, VA. To gather information on the knowledge base on this topic and identify research gaps, ahead of the meeting we conducted a literature search using PubMed to identify publications that related to HAP, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Abstracts were all analyzed and we report on those considered by the respiratory sub study group at the meeting to be most relevant to the field. Many of the studies published are symptom-based studies (as opposed to objective measures of lung function or clinical examination etc.) and measurement of HAP was not done. Many found some association between indoor exposures to biomass smoke as assessed by stove type (e.g., open fire vs. liquid propane gas) and respiratory symptoms such as wheeze and cough. Among the studies that examined objective measures (e.g. spirometry) as a health outcome, the data supporting an association between biomass smoke exposure and COPD in adult women are fairly robust, but the findings for asthma are mixed. If an association was observed between the exposures and lung function, most data seemed to demonstrate mild to moderate reductions in lung function, the pathophysiological mechanisms of which need to be investigated. In the end, the group identified a series of scientific gaps and opportunities for research that need to be addressed to better understand the respiratory effects of exposure to indoor burning of the different forms of biomass fuels

Mind the gaps: clinical trial concepts to address unanswered questions in aeroallergen immunotherapy. An NIAID/AHRQ Workshop

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases organized a workshop to develop trial concepts that could improve the usage and effectiveness of aeroallergen immunotherapy (AAIT). Expert groups were formed to accomplish the following tasks: 1) Propose a study design to compare effectiveness and safety of subcutaneous versus sublingual AAIT; 2) Propose a study design to compare effectiveness and safety of AAIT using one or a few allergens vs all or most allergens to which a patient is sensitized; 3) Propose a study design to determine whether AAIT can alter the progression of childhood allergic airways disease; 4) Propose a study design to determine the optimal dose and duration of AAIT to achieve maximal effectiveness with acceptable safety. Study designs were presented by the workgroups, extensively discussed at the workshop and revised for this report. The proposed trials would be of long duration, and require large, highly characterized patient populations. Scientific caveats and feasibility matters are discussed. These concepts are intended to help the development of clinical trials that can address some of the major questions related to the practice of AAIT for the management and prevention of allergic airways disease

Clinical research needs for the management of chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps in the new era of biologics : a National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases workshop

The development of biologics targeting various aspects of type 2 inflammation for the treatment of chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) will provide clinicians with powerful tools to help treat these patients. However, other therapies are also available, and positioning of biologics in a management algorithm will require comparative trials. In November 2019, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases convened a workshop to consider potential future trial designs. Workshop participants represented a wide spectrum of clinical specialties, including otolaryngology, allergy, and pulmonary medicine, as well as expertise in CRSwNP pathophysiology and in trial methodology and statistics. The workshop discussed the current state of knowledge in CRSwNP and considered the advantages and disadvantages of various clinical trial or observational study designs and various clinical outcomes. The output from this workshop, which is presented in this report, will hopefully provide investigators with adequate information and ideas to design future studies and answer critical clinical questions. It will also help clinicians understand the current state of the management of CRSwNP and its gaps and be more able to interpret the new information to come

Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of food allergy in the United States: summary of the NIAID-Sponsored Expert Panel report

Section 1. Introduction1.1. Overview1.2. Relationship of the US Guidelines to other guidelines1.3. How the Guidelines were developed1.3.1. The Coordinating Committee1.3.2. The Expert Panel1.3.3. The independent, systematic literature review and report1.3.4. Assessing the quality of the body of evidence1.3.5. Preparation of the draft Guidelines and Expert Panel deliberations1.3.6. Public comment period and draft Guidelines revision1.4. Defining the strength of each clinical guideline1.5. SummarySection 2. Definitions, prevalence, and epidemiology of food allergy2.1. Definitions2.1.1. Definitions of food allergy, food, and food allergens2.1.2. Definitions of related terms2.1.3. Definitions of specific food-induced allergic conditions2.2. Prevalence and epidemiology of food allergy2.2.1. Systematic reviews of the prevalence of food allergy2.2.2. Prevalence of allergy to specific foods, food-induced anaphylaxis, and food allergy with comorbid conditionsSection 3. Natural history of food allergy and associated disorders3.1. Natural history of food allergy in children3.2. Natural history of levels of allergen-specific IgE to foods in children3.3. Natural history of food allergy in adults3.4. Natural history of conditions that coexist with food allergy3.4.1. Asthma3.4.2. Atopic dermatitis3.4.3. Eosinophilic esophagitis3.4.4. Exercise-induced anaphylaxis3.5. Risk factors for the development of food allergy3.6. Risk factors for severity of allergic reactions to foods3.7. Incidence, prevalence, and consequences of unintentional exposure to food allergensSection 4. Diagnosis of food allergy4.1. When should food allergy be suspected?4.2. Diagnosis of IgE-mediated food allergy4.2.1. Medical history and physical examination4.2.2. Methods to identify the causative food4.2.2.1. Skin prick test4.2.2.2. Intradermal tests4.2.2.3. Total serum IgE4.2.2.4. Allergen-specific serum IgE4.2.2.5. Atopy patch test4.2.2.6. Use of skin prick tests, sIgE tests, and atopy patch tests in combination4.2.2.7. Food elimination diets4.2.2.8. Oral food challenges4.2.2.9. Nonstandardized and unproven procedures4.3. Diagnosis of non-IgE-mediated immunologic adverse reactions to food4.3.1. Eosinophilic gastrointestinal diseases4.3.2. Food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome4.3.3. Food protein-induced allergic proctocolitis4.3.4. Food protein-induced enteropathy syndrome4.3.5. Allergic contact dermatitis4.3.6. Systemic contact dermatitis4.4. Diagnosis of IgE-mediated contact urticariaSection 5. Management of nonacute allergic reactions and prevention of food allergy5.1. Management of individuals with food allergy5.1.1. Dietary avoidance of specific allergens in IgE-mediated food allergy5.1.2. Dietary avoidance of specific allergens in non-IgE-mediated food allergy5.1.3. Effects of dietary avoidance on associated and comorbid conditions, such as atopic dermatitis, asthma, and eosinophilic esophagitis5.1.4. Food avoidance and nutritional status5.1.5. Food labeling in food allergy management5.1.6. When to re-evaluate patients with food allergy5.1.7. Pharmacologic intervention for the prevention of food-induced allergic reactions5.1.7.1. IgE-mediated reactions5.1.7.2. Non-IgE-mediated reactions5.1.8. Pharmacologic intervention for the treatment of food-induced allergic reactions5.1.9. Immunotherapy for food allergy management5.1.9.1. Allergen-specific immunotherapy5.1.9.2. Immunotherapy with cross-reactive allergens5.1.10. Quality-of-life issues associated with food allergy5.1.11. Vaccinations in patients with egg allergy5.1.11.1. Measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella vaccine5.1.11.2. Influenza vaccine5.1.11.3. Yellow fever vaccine5.1.11.4. Rabies vaccines5.2. Management of individuals at risk for food allergy5.2.1. Nonfood allergen avoidance in at-risk patients5.2.2. Dietary avoidance of foods with cross-reactivities in at-risk patients5.2.3. Testing of allergenic foods in patients at high risk prior to introduction5.2.4. Testing in infants and children with persistent atopic dermatitis5.3. Prevention of food allergy5.3.1. Maternal diet during pregnancy and lactation5.3.2. Breast-feeding5.3.3. Special diets in infants and young children5.3.3.1. Soy infant formula versus cow's milk formula5.3.3.2. Hydrolyzed infant formulas versus cow's milk formula or breast-feeding5.3.4. Timing of introduction of allergenic foods to infantsSection 6. Diagnosis and management of food-induced anaphylaxis and other acute allergic reactions to foods6.1. Definition of anaphylaxis6.2. Diagnosis of acute, life-threatening, food-induced allergic reactions6.3. Treatment of acute, life-threatening, food-induced allergic reactions6.3.1. First-line and adjuvant treatment for food-induced anaphylaxis6.3.2. Treatment of refractory anaphylaxis6.3.3. Possible risks of acute therapy for anaphylaxis6.3.4. Treatment to prevent biphasic or protracted food-induced allergic reactions6.3.5. Management of milder, acute food-induced allergic reactions in health care settings6.4. Management of food-induced anaphylaxisAppendix A. Primary author affiliations and acknowledgmentsAppendix B. List of abbreviationsReference<br/

Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of food allergy in the United States: report of the NIAID-sponsored expert panel

Food allergy is an important public health problem that affects children and adults and may be increasing in prevalence. Despite the risk of severe allergic reactions and even death, there is no current treatment for food allergy: the disease can only be managed by allergen avoidance or treatment of symptoms. The diagnosis and management of food allergy also may vary from one clinical practice setting to another. Finally, because patients frequently confuse nonallergic food reactions, such as food intolerance, with food allergies, there is an unfounded belief among the public that food allergy prevalence is higher than it truly is. In response to these concerns, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, working with 34 professional organizations, federal agencies, and patient advocacy groups, led the development of clinical guidelines for the diagnosis and management of food allergy. These Guidelines are intended for use by a wide variety of health care professionals, including family practice physicians, clinical specialists, and nurse practitioners. The Guidelines include a consensus definition for food allergy, discuss comorbid conditions often associated with food allergy, and focus on both IgE-mediated and non-IgE-mediated reactions to food. Topics addressed include the epidemiology, natural history, diagnosis, and management of food allergy, as well as the management of severe symptoms and anaphylaxis. These Guidelines provide 43 concise clinical recommendations and additional guidance on points of current controversy in patient management. They also identify gaps in the current scientific knowledge to be addressed through future research

NIAID, NIEHS, NHLBI, and MCAN Workshop Report : The indoor environment and childhood asthma-implications for home environmental intervention in asthma prevention and management

Environmental exposures have been recognized as critical in the initiation and exacerbation of asthma, one of the most common chronic childhood diseases. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences; National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; and Merck Childhood Asthma Network sponsored a joint workshop to discuss the current state of science with respect to the indoor environment and its effects on the development and morbidity of childhood asthma. The workshop included US and international experts with backgrounds in allergy/allergens, immunology, asthma, environmental health, environmental exposures and pollutants, epidemiology, public health, and bioinformatics. Workshop participants provided new insights into the biologic properties of indoor exposures, indoor exposure assessment, and exposure reduction techniques. This informed a primary focus of the workshop: to critically review trials and research relevant to the prevention or control of asthma through environmental intervention. The participants identified important limitations and gaps in scientific methodologies and knowledge and proposed and prioritized areas for future research. The group reviewed socioeconomic and structural challenges to changing environmental exposure and offered recommendations for creative study design to overcome these challenges in trials to improve asthma management. The recommendations of this workshop can serve as guidance for future research in the study of the indoor environment and on environmental interventions as they pertain to the prevention and management of asthma and airway allergies

NIAID, NIEHS, NHLBI, and MCAN Workshop Report : The indoor environment and childhood asthma-implications for home environmental intervention in asthma prevention and management

Environmental exposures have been recognized as critical in the initiation and exacerbation of asthma, one of the most common chronic childhood diseases. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences; National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; and Merck Childhood Asthma Network sponsored a joint workshop to discuss the current state of science with respect to the indoor environment and its effects on the development and morbidity of childhood asthma. The workshop included US and international experts with backgrounds in allergy/allergens, immunology, asthma, environmental health, environmental exposures and pollutants, epidemiology, public health, and bioinformatics. Workshop participants provided new insights into the biologic properties of indoor exposures, indoor exposure assessment, and exposure reduction techniques. This informed a primary focus of the workshop: to critically review trials and research relevant to the prevention or control of asthma through environmental intervention. The participants identified important limitations and gaps in scientific methodologies and knowledge and proposed and prioritized areas for future research. The group reviewed socioeconomic and structural challenges to changing environmental exposure and offered recommendations for creative study design to overcome these challenges in trials to improve asthma management. The recommendations of this workshop can serve as guidance for future research in the study of the indoor environment and on environmental interventions as they pertain to the prevention and management of asthma and airway allergies