#interleukin-2

Atopic dermatitis is an allergy that affects an average of about 5% of the general population, with symptoms closely related to social stress. In socially active adults, the disease often becomes chronic. In the affected areas, infiltrating immune cells secrete inflammatory cytokines, which contribute to the development of symptoms. While these cytokines normally play a protective role against…

A possible cure for allergies?

Scientists from the Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF) in Davos, from the University of Tokyo, the RIKEN Research Institute in Yokohoma, and from Stanford University recently discovered a mechanism that could be the basis for a new way to handle allergies.

Mast cells play a key role in the disease process in allergies: As a reaction towards an allergen -- for example pollen or dust mites -- they release big amounts of substances that initiate an inflammatory process. Study leader Hideaki Morita and his team discovered that mast cells are not only "bad guys," but also have a "good side": They release the substance interleukin-2 that induces the production of certain immune cells called T-regulatory (Treg) cells. Treg cells can suppress the allergic inflammatory process in the airways induced by interleukin-10.

1 Definition

Das Vascular-Leak-Syndrom (VLS) ist eine häufige Form von Nebenwirkung, die bei der Therapie mit bestimmten Zytokinen auftreten kann. Besonders häufig ist dies bei einer längeren Applikation von Interleukin-2 oder solchen Immuntoxinen, die auf der Basis von Interleukin-2 entwickelt wurden, der Fall.

2 Klinisches Bild

Leitsymptom des VLS ist eine signifikante Zunahme der…