POPULATION ANALYSIS OF CELLULAR-RESPONSES TO SYNTHETIC PEPTIDES OF DER-P-II, A MAJOR ALLERGEN MOLECULE OF DERMATOPHAGOIDES-PTERONYSSINUS, IN ALLERGIC AND NONALLERGIC SUBJECTS

Responses of peripheral blood mononuclear cells to synthetic oligopept ides of Der p II, one of the major allergen molecules of Dermatophagoi des pteronyssinus, were compared between allergic and nonallergic subj ects. Healthy subjects showed positive responses to crude extracts of D. pteronyssinus, but only allergic subjects showed elevated cellular responses to Der p II. We synthesized three oligopeptides of Der p II in which motifs of a possible T-cell epitope were included. Of 14 subj ects with positive response to Der p II, three responded to all three peptides, while five did not respond to any peptide tested. In 11 alle rgic patients who showed positive response to Der p II, responsiveness to the peptide K33-T47 was significantly higher than that to other pe ptides (P < 0.05). All the responding patients were also positive for scratch test to Der p II, suggesting that those epitopes induced IgE-p romoting helper T-cell response in allergic persons. On the other hand , the in vitro cellular responses were not necessarily correlated to I gE production against Der p II in healthy subjects.