Better methods are needed to assess mast-cell activation in vivo and to distinguish the activation of mast cells from that of basophils. Tryptase, a neutral protease selectively concentrated in the secretory granules of human mast cells (but not basophils), is released by mast cells together with histamine and serves as a marker of mast-cell activation. In 17 patients with systemic mastocytosis...

Wasp venom allergy is the most common insect venom allergy in Europe. It is manifested by large local reaction or anaphylactic shock occurring after a wasp sting. The allergy can be treated by specific immunotherapy with whole venom extracts. Wasp venom is difficult and costly to obtain and is a subject to composition variation, therefore it can be advantageous to substitute it with a cocktail ...

BACKGROUND Ultra-rush induction of immunotherapy with Hymenoptera venom is a reliable and efficacious alternative to the rush induction protocol, though not widely used in European countries yet. Its safety, however, has been intensively discussed over the last few years. The aim of this retrospective case study was to examine the rate of allergic side-effects during our four-hour ultra-rush hy...

Learning to live with unloved others is crucial in the ecological crisis. Unloved wasps are feared and disliked for their sting. Understanding of importance increasing, however. Human-wasp encounters changing environmental changes, strategies multispecies cohabitation needed. This study highlights features wasp biology affecting human-wasp analyzes how conflicted relations could be mitigated. T...

A substantial degree of immunologic cross-reactivity is demonstrated among yellow jacket (YJV), yellow hornet (YHV) and white-faced hornet (WFHV) venoms and between the vespid venoms and paper wasp venom (PWV) by RAST inhibition studies of individual sera from allergic patients. Cross-reactivity is shown to be complete, partial or absent in various cases. In many cases RAST inhibition studies a...