BACKGROUND Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) has been proved to be effective in allergic rhinitis and asthma, but there are few data on its preventive effects, especially in children. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the clinical and preventive effects of SLIT in children by assessing onset of persistent asthma and new sensitizations, clinical symptoms, and bronchial hyperreactivity. METHODS A total of ...

Previous studies suggested that Roundabout (Robo) is a repulsive guidance receptor on growth cones that binds to an unknown midline ligand. Here we present genetic evidence that Slit is the midline Robo ligand; a companion paper presents biochemical evidence that Slit binds Robo. Slit is a large extracellular matrix protein expressed by midline glia. In slit mutants, growth cones enter the midl...

Immunotherapy is considered to be the only curative treatment for allergic diseases such as pollinosis, perennial rhinitis, asthma, and food allergy. The sublingual route is widely applied for immunotherapy for allergy, instead of the conventional administration by subcutaneous route. A recent meta-analysis of sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) has shown that this approach is safe, has positive cl...

CONCLUSIONS. Although all SLIT regimens resulted in an improvement in clinical efficacy, prolonged SLIT was the most effective. The reduction in IL-4 and increase in IL-10 production is consistent with observations from subcutaneous immunotherapy studies and provides insight into the mechanism of SLIT. These cytokine changes might serve as an objective marker of efficacy of SLIT for patients on...

CONCLUSIONS. Although all SLIT regimens resulted in an improvement in clinical efficacy, prolonged SLIT was the most effective. The reduction in IL-4 and increase in IL-10 production is consistent with observations from subcutaneous immunotherapy studies and provides insight into the mechanism of SLIT. These cytokine changes might serve as an objective marker of efficacy of SLIT for patients on...

Slit regulates migration of not only neurons, but also nonneuronal cells, such as leukocytes and cancer cells. Slit effect on cancer cell migration has not been well-characterized. In this study, we used several different assays to examine Slit effect on breast cancer cell migration in vitro. We show that ubiquitin-specific protease 33 (USP33)/VDU1, originally identified as a von Hippel-Lindau ...

First described as an axonal guidance cue through its repulsive effect on neurons expressing its receptor Roundabout (Robo), the Slit ligand has effects on cell migration, axon branching and elongation. Indirect evidence implicates Slit and Robo in lung development. We now demonstrate that Slit-2 and Slit-3 are developmentally regulated in embryonic murine lung. Immunohistochemistry demonstrate...

We investigate the interference of the surface plasmon polariton (SPP) with an incident beam on a metallic slit using the FDTD. We find that the bulk waves radiated at the slit edge by scattering of the SPP leak into the slit and induce accumulated charges within the skin depth, which excite new SPPs on the slit side-walls. The SPP on the top surface of aperture is coupled into the slit and ind...

BACKGROUND Economic evaluations are increasingly relevant in order to provide support for decision makers when judging about alternative ways to allocate public funds. Aim of this study was to evaluate the economic effect of treatment with high dose sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) in children. METHODS The study involved one allergy center, located in the north of Milan, Italy. From the existi...