LOCALIZATION OF IGE IN TISSUES BY AN IMMUNOPEROXIDASE TECHNIQUE

  • 1 January 1979
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 103  (6) , 274-275
Abstract
An indirect immunoperoxidase technique was used to study the content and distribution of Ig[immunoglobulin]E in formaldehyde solution-fixed, paraffin-embedded adenoid and nasal tissues of atopic and nonatopic persons. Adenoid tissue from 15 patients and nasal tissue from 5 patients with symptoms of inhalant allergies and augmented serum levels of total and allergen-specific IgE were examined with this method. Adenoid tissues from 5 patients without allergic symptoms were studied for comparison. A rich content of IgE, largely within the cytoplasm of the plasma cells, was observed in tissues of atopic subjects. The sections from nonallergic persons contained few weakly staining IgE-positive cells. Anatomic support for the role of IgE in hypersensitivity reaction of immediate type was provided. This immunoperoxidase technique, circumventing the principal shortcomings of the immunofluorescence procedures, afforded a highly sensitive and practical approach to cellular and tissue localization of IgE.