Immunity Flashcards
What are the 4 types of blood groups and what are their associated antigens and antibodies?
What are the different rhesus antigens?
C, c, D, E, e.
What are the symptoms of haemolytic disease of the newborn?
State why they occur.
Enlarged liver or spleen due to extramedullary haematopoiesis.
Generalised oedema due to heart failure from severe anaemia.
Yellowing of the skin and sclera due to excess bilirubin accumulation.
What lab tests are performed during pregnancy to confirm destruction of red blood cells?
Testing the amniotic fluid or blood from the umbilical cord for bilirubin (unconjugated).
How can haemolytic disease of the newborn be predicted?
Testing the mother for her rhesus antigens - negative is more likely.
Testing the baby for their rhesus antigens - positive is more likely.
Testing the mother for autoantibodies against rhesus D antigens.
Testing for anaemia or bilirubin from the umbilical vein.
How does RhoGam work?
Binds to fetal blood rhesus D antigens, preventing the identification of the positive antigen, preventing production of anti-rhesus-D antibodies.
When should RhoGam be administered?
From week 8 if anti-rhesus D antibodies have been formed before.
From week 28 if the mother’s status wasn’t known prior to this pregnancy.
What is the direct and indirect Coombs test?
Direct - tests the baby’s blood for rhesus-D antibodies, bound to the RBCs after birth.
Indirect - tests the mother’s blood for rhesus-D antibodies.
What are some serological tests that can help confirm diagnosis of myasthenia gravis?
Anti-AChR antibodies.
Anti-striated muscle antibodies.
Anti-tyrosine antibodies.
Anti-thyroid antibodies.
Why can babies transiently present with myaesthenia gravis?
The anti-AChR antibodies are IgG and so can cross the placenta, but are eventually degraded within the body so no longer block the AChRs.
Other than myaesthenia gravis, what are some type V hypersensitivity reactions?
Also, state what subset of hypersensitivity type V is of.
Grave’s disease - stimulates TSH receptors.
Pernicious anaemia - protein blockade, against intrinsic factor in gastric parietal cells.
Type II hypersensitivity reactions.
What is an antigen?
Any substance that triggers an immune response as form of effector T/B cells and antibodies.
What are some cell bound antigens seen in type II hypersensitivity reactions?
Exogenous - blood group antigens, rhesus D antigens.
Endogenous - self-antigens (autoimmune).
What are the potential complications of haemolytic disease of the newborn?
Hydrops fetalis.
Hepatomegaly/ splenomegaly.
Severe hyperbilirubinaemia.
Kernicterus - brain damage due to unconjugated bilirubin crossing the BBB.
What is the Fc receptor, and how can we target this?
A receptor on immune cells and components that can be blocked by immunoglobulins to prevent activation.
What is the pathogenesis of type IV hypersensitivity reactions?
Sensitisation - antigen presenting cells present the antigen to t-helper1 cells, activating them.
Effector - TH1 then produces cytokines such as IFN-gamma, TNF-beta, interleukin-1 and -2.
The cytokines then activate the macrophages, causing superoxide radicals and nitric oxide to be produced, destroying tissues.
What are some steroid sparing agents used in treatment of type III and type IV hypersensitivity reactions?
Anti-proliferative - azathioprine, mycophenolate meofetil.
Cytotoxic - cyclophosphamide.
Anti-metabolite - methotrexate.
Anti-T-cell - cyclosporin.
What are the functions of TH2 cells, and what are they activated by?
B-cells - IgE and IgG production.
Eosinophils - killing pathogens.
Mast cells - allergies.
IL-4.
What are the different types of allergens?
State some examples.
Seasonal exposures - tree/ grass pollens.
Perennial exposure (all the time) - house mite dust, animal dander and fungal spores.
Accidental exposure - insect venom, medicines such as penicillin, latex, foods (milk, nuts and shellfish).
What is the hygiene hypothesis?
Children exposed animals, pets and microbes in the early postnatal period have greater protection against certain allergic diseases.
What is the biodiversity hypothesis?
Western lifestyle induces alteration of the symbiotic relationships with parasites and bacteria, leading to dysbiosis (compositional and functional alterations of the microbiome).
What can the impact of dysbiosis be?
Increased auto-immune diseases - crohns, UC, allergies, etc.
Obesity.
Type II diabetes.
Colorectal cancer.
Autism.
What is the sensitisation of allergies?
What is the effector phase of allergens?
What are the red and white patches of urticaria due to?
Red - vasodilation.
White - increased vascular permeability.
What are some signs and symptoms of anaphylaxis?
What are some treatments for abnormal adaptive immune responses against the allergens?
TH2 response - allergen desensitisation.
Omalizumab - anti-IgE monoclonal antibody.
Mepolizumab - anti-IL5 monoclonal antibody.
What are the two classifications of auto-immune diseases?
State some examples of each.
Organ specific - Goodpasture’s syndrome, haemolytic anaemia, myaesthenia gravis, grave’s disease.
Non-organ specific - rheumatoid arthritis, SLE.
What is allergic asthma?
The symptomatic presentation of asthma of wheeze, cough, shortness of breath and tight chest, secondary to an allergy.
What is urticaria?
State the two types.
Maculopapular pruritic or itchy rash, which can be chronic or acute.
Acute is less than 6 weeks.
Chronic is greater than 6 weeks - chronic spontaneous urticaria.
State some differences between IgE and non-IgE mediated food allergies - symptoms onset, common foods and presenting age.
What is pollen food syndrome?
The most common food allergy in adults, where a cross-reactivity between the pollens of fruit, vegetables, nuts and pollens cause hay fever, due to having a similar structure as birch pollen.
Why do patients not get systemic symptoms with pollen food syndrome?
The stomach acids and heat denature the allergens, preventing absorption.
What is the immune-dominant protein of eggs and why?
Ovomucoid - it is heat stable, not heat labile.
What factors influence the presentation of food allergy?
Age.
Natural history of the allergy.
Cross-reactivity amongst other foods.
Food processing.
What are often the first changes seen in deteriorating children?
Changes in respiratory rate - can increase or decrease.
What value determines whether a skin-prick test is positive, and what are the controls of this test?
If the rash is 3mm or more, then it is positive.
Positive control - histamine, to check that the test works.
Negative control - saline.
What is the most common cause of an urticaric rash, and what are the associated symptoms?
Viral infections.
Headaches and fever, most commonly.
What is the dual allergen hypothesis?
Oral exposure to potential allergens can lead to the development of Th1 and Treg memory cells, which increases the likelihood of tolerance for that allergen.
Cutaneous exposure to allergens through the skin can lead to development of Th2 memory cells, which increases the likelihood of allergy.
What interleukins cause the class switching of B-cells?
Explain this.
IL-4 and IL-13.
B-cells begin to produce IgE instead of IgM, upon sensitisation of an allergen.
What are the 9 most common IgE food allergens?
Milk.
Eggs.
Fish.
Crustacean fish.
Tree nuts.
Peanuts.
Wheat.
Soya.
Seasame.
What are the 4 most common non-IgE food allergens?
Soya.
Wheat.
Egg.
Milk.
What are some non-allergen factors that can increase the risk of IgE-mediated allergies?
Alcohol consumption.
Exercise.
Menstrual period.
What are the exposure, most common allergens, timing, environment and reproducibility of an IgE mediated food allergy?
Exposure - eating, skin contact or inhaled by aerosol.
Allergens - milk, egg, peanut and tree nuts.
Timing - typically 5-30 minutes, always within 1-2 hours of ingestion, at first known exposure.
Environment - new part of the diet; during weaning or at restaurants.
Reproducibility - always has symptoms with exposure.
What are the exposure, most common allergens, timing, environment and reproducibility of an non-IgE mediated food allergy?
Exposure - eating or if breastfed, through the mother’s diet.
Allergen - soya or milk.
Timing - within 1-72 hours after ingestion, within the first year of life.
Environment - regular part of the diet, of the person or mother (breastfed).
Reproducibility - symptoms settle on dietary exclusion within 2-14 days.
How can we confirm a non-IgE mediated food allergy?
Remove the potential allergen for 4 weeks, where symptoms should improve.
Add the potential allergen back into the diet, and the symptoms should worsen again.
What are the common symptoms for non-IgE mediated food allergies?
Eczema.
Fore- and midgut - vomiting, reflux, colic, dysphagia, food bolus impaction.
Hindgut - diarrhoea/ constipation, mucous and/ or blood stools, erythema around the anus.
What are the red flags for IgE and non-IgE mediated food allergies?
IgE - anaphylaxis.
Non-IgE - vomiting and diarrhoea, leading to shock and collapse. Poor growth.
What are the different types of food challenges?
Open food challenge - the patient knowingly ingests the food.
Single blinded challenge - the food is ingested by the patient without their knowledge.
Double-blinded placebo controlled food challenge - within a research setting, where the investigator and patient doesn’t know when they are ingesting the food.
What does a positive SPT and sIgE show, physiologically?
IgE bound to cutaneous mast cells, leading to the release of histamine-containing granules.
Specific IgE - a specific IgE within the blood.
If a baby who is breastfeeding has an allergy to cows milk, what is the first line treatment?
Maternal exclusion of all milk products, to continue the baby breastfeeding.
What does the higher the specific IgE concentration show?
The increased likelihood that they have the allergy.
What are some differences between pollen food syndrome and a primary nut allergy?
PFS:
- Has a history of isolated symptoms in the oropharynx or throat.
- Has a reaction to raw but not cooked nuts.
- Has a reaction to raw fruits.
- Has previously tolerated nuts.
What are some nuts that frequently cause pollen food syndrome?
Hazelnuts.
Peanuts.
Almonds.
Walnuts.
Brazil nuts.
What is the interpretation of the following results?
1) History of acute reaction with identifiable trigger, with a positive test.
2) No history with a positive test.
3) Has no reaction to the food and has a positive test.
1) Allergy.
2) Sensitisation.
3) Sensitisation but tolerant.
What is FPIES?
Food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome - a non-IgE mediated food allergy that typically presents in infancy with repetitive vomiting, around 1-4 hours after food ingestion.
What are some common symptoms and complications of FPIES?
Pale/ lethargy/ limpness/ floppy.
Diarrhoea.
Dehydration.
Hypotension.
Hypothermia.
What are the most common foods that cause FPIES?
Milk.
Soya.
Fish.
Egg.
Rice.
What is anaphylaxis?
A severe life threatening systemic hypersensitivity reaction that has a rapid onset with airway, breathing or circulation problems, which is usually associated with skin or mucosal changes.
What are the 3 pathogenesis’ of anaphylaxis?
IgE - food, drug, insect stings or other allergic reactions.
Immunological others - immune aggregates, complement system activation, coagulation system activation, autoimmune mechanisms.
Non-immunological - exercise, cold, alcohol, medicines.
What are some symptoms of anaphylaxis associated with the following systems, and state what mediators are associated here:
- Upper respiratory.
- Lower respiratory.
- Digestive.
- Cardiovascular.
- Skin.
What are the most common known allergens causing anaphylaxis in adults and children?
Adults - tree pollen and unidentified nuts.
Children - milk.
What are some factors that amplify the effects of anaphylaxis?
Age - very old or very young.
Asthma and other respiratory diseases.
CVD.
Exercise.
Infection and stress.