Allergens induce apoptosis in lymphocytes from atopic patients.

Repeated stimulation of immune cells may induce an "activation-induced cell death" (AICD) program. Allergy is characterized by the cyclic activation of allergen-reactive immune cells. To study the effects of allergen stimulation in cell proliferation and apoptosis in atopic subjects, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBL) from 40 atopic patients with positive reactivity to the allergens Olea Europaea (OE) and Lollium Perenne (LP) (20 without immunotherapy and 20 with specific immunotherapy) and 10 normal subjects were cultured with the allergens OE and LP. PBL from atopic patients proliferate more vigorously than cells from normal subjects after culture in vitro with both allergens, although PBL from atopic subjects without immunotherapy proliferate more than PBL from atopic subjects with immunotherapy. The study of cell proliferation shows that in atopic patients PBL mainly exhibit the CD4/CD45RO phenotype. This preferential proliferation is more evident in PBL from atopic patients treated without immunotherapy. Cell culture with specific allergens induces apoptosis in PBL from atopic patients. The percentage of apoptosis increased when atopic patients had been previously treated with immunotherapy. In addition to the observed increase in cell proliferation, apoptosis mainly occurs in the CD45RO cells that support the involvement of these cells in allergy. Furthermore, results obtained in cells from immunized patients suggest that an AICD process may partly at least explain the mechanism of action of allergen immunotherapy.