EFFECT OF INFLUENZA VIRUS INFECTION ON OVALBUMIN SPECIFIC IgE RESPONSES TO INHALED ANTIGEN IN THE RAT

Upper respiratory tract viral infections have been reported in clinical studies to serve as risk factors for allergic sensitization In order to study the relationship linking influenza virus illnesses to development of allergy murine models of allergen sensitization were pre viously employed These models showed that lethal influenza viruses were able to trigger allergen specific immunoglobulin E IgE production and to inhibit tolerance to repeated exposure to aerosolized allergen in the mouse The disadvantage of these murine models consists in the utilization of virulant and lethal strains of influenza virus A nonlethal rat adapted influenza virus RAIV host resistance model has been developed in our labora tory It was used to evaluate the effect of influenza virus infection on IgE responses to inhaled ovalbumin OA in the rat The high IgE responder Brown Norway BN rat was chosen for further study after comparing the IgE response to OA in Fischer 344 F344 and BN rats On d 1 BN rats were sensitized by administration of 1 mg OA subcuta neously alone or together with aluminum hydroxide 200 mg and Bordetella pertussis 9 15 10 killed bacilli per rat in 1 ml or only received saline Rats were either infected with RAIV or sham infected on d 0 24 h prior to sensitization or on d 15 17 or 57 Rats were exposed for 3 min to aerosolized OA OA 3 in phosphate buffered saline EFFECT OF INFLUENZA VIRUS INFECTION ON OVALBUMIN SPECIFIC IgE RESPONSES TO INHALED ANTIGEN IN THE RAT Herv Lebrec U S Environmental Protection Agency Health Effects Research Laboratory Research Triangle Park North Carolina USA