Stanley F. Hampton

Experimental and clinical study of fresh and modified pollen extracts

Abstract 1.1. Fresh extracts of pollen were modified by formolization, radiation with ultraviolet light, heating, acctylation, and alum-precipitation and were compared in clinical and experimental studies with fresh and regular extracts. 2.2. Treatment of undialyzed extracts of pollen with formaldehyde resulted in an increase in nitrogen precipitated with protein by phosphotungstic acid. It was shown that after formaldehyde treatment part of the dialyzable nonprotein nitrogen was precipitated with protein, and experiments suggested that protein split products, such as amino acids, might be precipitated under such conditions.Heating to 70° C. caused a precipitation and loss of protein nitrogen in ragweed extracts, but none in timothy extract. 3.3. The protein in pollen extracts was stabilized by treatment with formaldehyde, heating, or radiation with ultraviolet light. In alumprecipitated ragweed extract there was a loss of protein on ageing, similar to the loss in regular extract. 4.4. The gelatin liquefying enzymes in ragweed pollen extract were inactivated by formolization, heating to 70° C. for an hour, acetylation or radiation with ultraviolet light, and subsequent heating to 40° C. 5.5. In neutralization of sensitive serum, the extracts modified by formolization, heating, radiation with ultraviolet light, and acetylation were reduced in activity in comparison with fresh extract. Regular extract one year old showed a loss of neutralizing capacity out of proportion to the decrease of protein content. 6.6. The serologic response in hay fever patients treated with acetylated, formolized, and heated extract was less than that in patients treated with regular, fresh, or alum-precipitated extracts. The fresh extract gave the greatest response. 7.7. Modification of the pollen extracts did not eliminate constitutional reactions. Since the various phenomena produced by the modified extracts required different degrees of specificity, no single test could be considered a measure of all types of allergic activity. 8.8. The clinical results were best in the group of hay fever patients treated with fresh extract. Alum-precipitated and formolized extracts gave results which seemed fairly comparable to those obtained by regular extract. Heated and acetylated extracts gave the least satisfactory results. 9.9. The antigenic relationship of the fresh, formolized, and heated extracts was studied by means of the Dale test. The formolized and heated extracts showed a modification of specificity in that they failed to neutralize uteri of pigs sensitized with regular extract.

The sensitivity of man to human dander, with particular reference to eczema (allergic dermatitis)

Abstract 1.1. Human dander extract was found to be reactive in certain human skins. 2.2. Thirty of thirty-three patients with eczema were skin reactive to human dander extract, and their sera contained skin-sensitizing antibodies for it. 3.3. The results of direct skin tests on various allergic and normal persons are given. Cases of eczema usually showed positive reactions, while the noneczema persons usually showed negative reactions. 4.4. Only ten of ninety sera from patients with allergic diseases other than eczema contained skin-sensitizing antibodies. None of ten normal nonallergic sera contained skin-sensitizing antibodies. 5.5. Only three of seventy-five patients with dermatoses other than eczema were significantly reactive to human dander extract. 6.6. The quantitative studies of the human dander antibody by means of dilution tests are given. 7.7. Neutralization tests of human dander-sensitive sera, with human dander antigen and house dust antigen are described. 8.8. No relationship was found between sensitivity to human dander and that to other animal danders.

Antigenic fractions in ragweed pollen: I. Water-soluble fractions

Abstract Two water-soluble fractions have been separated by fractional precipitation from low ragweed pollen extract. Each of these had certain characteristics of proteins, but showed marked differences in their nitrogen content and in chemical reactions. The two fractions gave positive skin reactions in direct tests on ragweed-sensitive patients and on testing sites prepared with the serum of ragweed-sensitive patients (passive transfer). The relative activity of these two fractions varied greatly in different cases. The two fractions also showed marked differences in their capacity to neutralize sensitive sera. Here again, their relative activities varied with different sera. Studies by the Dale test showed that each of the two fractions had a certain antigenic specificity as well as cross relationship.

Antigenic studies by the dale test: I. The antigenic relationship of certain pollens

Abstract 1.1. The protein fraction of low ragweed pollen extract produced muscular contraction and completely neutralized the uterine antibodies of guinea pigs sensitized by whole low ragweed pollen extract, as evidenced by the Dale test. Whereas, dialyzed low ragweed pollen extract also produced muscular contraction and neutralized the uterine antibodies to the whole extract, the dialysate completely failed to cause any contraction. The standardization of whole pollen extracts on the basis of their protein content was a measure of the reactive substance in whole pollen extract. 2.2. Specific pollen extract always neutralized to the related pollen extract. 3.3. A related pollen extract in every instance produced a contraction of the uterine horn sensitized by a specific pollen. 4.4. The related pollen extract neutralized to the specific in 21 instances and did not neutralize in 17 experiments. 5.5. These experiments indicate an antigenic relationship but not an identity of the pollens used in this study.

Antigenic studies by the dale test: II. The antigenicity of house dust

Abstract Twenty-eight of 31 guinea pigs, given a single intraperitoneal injection of purified alum-precipitated house dust extract from four different sources, were found sensitive by the Dale test. Positive Dale tests were obtained with feather extract in 10 of 20 experiments, with dog dander in 4 of 20 experiments, and with cat dander in 4 of 20 experiments. Cottonseed, cotton linters, kapok, raw silk, orris, glue, pyrethrum, wool, tobacco, ragweed, jute, horse dander, and the molds, Alternaria, Aspergillus, Mucor, Monilia albicans, Dematium, Penicillium , and Hormodendrum , failed to produce positive Dale tests in a total of 147 tests on dust-sensitized guinea pigs. Uterine muscles, sensitized by dust extract, gave positive Dale reactions to dust extracts after the muscles were neutralized to certain reacting inhalants in 13 of 18 instances. With the use of 3 dust extracts, 2 prepared with dusts from individual sources (B-dust and C-dust) and one from several sources (D-dust), neutralization to the sensitizing dust extract was effected by one or by the other two dusts in all of the 12 experiments. The sensitizing dust extract neutralized to one of the other dust extracts in 12 of 13 experiments. Human dander extract gave a positive Dale test in 8 of 12 uteri sensitized by dust extract, but completely neutralized to dust extract in only one instance. Alum-precipitated human dander extract sensitized 2 of 4 guinea pigs injected, and one of these two was sensitive to dust extract. House dust extract contained an antigen other than that found in the known inhalants tested, and this antigen was common to three different dust extracts as determined by the Dale test.

The problem of allergy at an Army Air Forces Hospital: I. Respiratory allergy (hay fever, vasomotor rhinitis, and bronchial asthma)

Abstract 1.1. A report of the activity of the Allergy Section and Clinic, AAF Regional Hospital, San Antonio Aviation Cadet Center, San Antonio, Texas, from Aug. 1, 1942, to Aug. 1, 1943, has been presented. 2.2. Eight thousand four hundred nine clinic visits were made by Air Forces personnel to the Allergy Clinic of this Hospital. 3.3. One thousand five hundred forty-one new patients were examined by the Allergy Section of this hospital. 4.4. Nine hundred twenty-one of the 1,238 cases of allergic diseases were respiratory allergy (hay fever, vasomotor rhinitis, and bronchial asthma). 5.5. One hundred six or 8.9 per cent of the 1,191 men receiving the Certificate of Disability for Discharge under Section 2, AR 615-360 (Nov. 26, 1942), had allergic diseases. Eighty-six or 7.48 per cent had bronchial asthma. 6.6. Three and seven-tenths per cent of candidates for aviation training who were disqualified because of failure to meet the physical requirements (AR 40-110, Dec. 3, 1942) had allergic disorders. 7.7. The factors used in determination of fitness for aviation training of individuals with or suspected of having respiratory allergic disease are discussed. 8.8. The greatest problem of allergy has been intrinsic bronchial asthma associated with chronic respiratory infection. The high incidence of this syndrome in the young Air Forces age group is discussed.