BACKGROUND To confirm allergy to beta-lactam (BL), a basophil activation test in flow cytometry based on CD63 up-regulation was described. CD203c is a more recent basophil activation marker and up to day there is no consensus about which marker is the more sensitive one. CD203c has not yet been evaluated in the diagnosis of BL allergy. OBJECTIVE The aim of the study was to compare the reliabi...

Increased FcεR1α expression with upregulated CD203c expression on peripheral basophils is seen in patients with chronic urticaria (CU). However, there has been no published report on the association between CD203c expression level and clinical disease activity in CU patients. To investigate whether the increase of basophil activation is associated with the disease activity of CU, we measured ba...

Although fluoroquinolones (FQs) are generally well-tolerated antibiotics, increasing numbers of hypersensitivity reactions have been reported. These can be evaluated in vitro by basophil activation tests (BATs); however, sensitivity is not optimal. Many factors could influence sensitivity such as basophil activation markers. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of 2 differe...

BACKGROUND The basophil activation test (BAT), in which translocation of markers to the surface of blood basophils is measured in response to allergen by flow cytometry, is a rapid assay that is gaining popularity. Two markers are currently being evaluated for the BAT; CD63 and the lineage-specific CD203c. In a recent report, detection of CD203c after lysis with Saponin was shown to be superior...

RATIONALE Basophils contribute to anaphylaxis and allergies. We examined the utility of assessing basophil-associated surface antigens (CD11b/CD63/CD123/CD203c/CD294) in characterizing and monitoring subjects with nut allergy. METHODS We used flow cytometry to analyze basophils at baseline (without any activation) and after ex vivo stimulation of whole blood by addition of nut or other allerg...

BACKGROUND Sensitization to hazelnut (HN) is frequent and requires clarification to determine whether this sensitization is clinically relevant. The aim of this study was to investigate basophil activation profiles in HN-sensitized and allergic subjects. METHODS Basophil activation was determined by flow cytometric analyses of CD63 and CD203c expression using several HN allergen concentration...

Measuring specific IgE can yield direct, accurate, and objective data. Nevertheless, clinical symptoms of allergy are often inconsistent with these data. Recently, the expression of CD203c, a surface marker of basophils, has been reported as capable of distinguishing allergic patients. This study compared specific IgE in serum and skin tests against antigen to assess CD203c as a biomarker corre...

Background: Asthma is very common in children and its diagnosis is based on clinical manifestations, which can be misdiagnosed as other respiratory diseases with similar signs and symptoms. Objective: To analyze the expression of ST2L and CD203c in the diagnosis of pediatric asthma. Methods: Basophils were purified from whole blood samples of patients and healthy controls using Ficol-Paque grad...

BACKGROUND Asthma is very common in children and its diagnosis is based on clinical manifestations, which can be misdiagnosed as other respiratory diseases with similar signs and symptoms. OBJECTIVE To analyze the expression of ST2L and CD203c in the diagnosis of pediatric asthma. METHODS Basophils were purified from whole blood samples of patients and healthy controls using Ficol-Paque gra...

In chronic active Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection (CAEBV), ectopic EBV infection has been described in T or natural killer (NK) cells. NK cell-type infection (NK-CAEBV) is characterized by large granular lymphocytosis, high IgE levels and unusual reactions to mosquito bites, including severe local skin reactions, fever and liver dysfunction. However, the mechanisms underlying these reactions...