The many faces of the hygiene hypothesis - 17/08/11
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Munich, Germany, and Zurich, SwitzerlandThis activity is available for CME credit. See page 34A for important information.
Abstract |
About 15 years have gone by since Strachan first proposed the idea that infections and unhygienic contact might confer protection against the development of allergic illnesses. The so-called hygiene hypothesis has ever since undergone numerous more or less subtle modifications by various researchers in the fields of epidemiology, clinical science, and immunology. Three major tracts have developed exploring the role of overt viral and bacterial infections, the significance of environmental exposure to microbial compounds, and the effect of both on underlying responses of the innate and adaptive immunity. To date, a truly unifying concept has not yet emerged, but various pieces of a complex interplay between immune responses of the host, characteristics of the invading microorganism, the level and variety of the environmental exposure, and the interactions between a genetic background and a range of exposures becomes apparent. These influences are discussed as determinants for a number of complex allergic illnesses in this review, while we attempt to pay attention to the importance of different phenotypes, namely of the asthma syndrome. Even if today practical implications cannot directly be deduced from these findings, there is great potential for the development of novel preventive and therapeutic strategies in the future.
Le texte complet de cet article est disponible en PDF.Key words : Allergy, asthma, infection, innate, microbial, virus, Toll
Abbreviations used : COAST, PRR, RSV, TLR
Plan
(Supported by an unrestricted educational grant from Genentech, Inc. and Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation) Series editor: Harold S. Nelson, MD |
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Disclosure of potential conflict of interest: R. Lauener has consultant arrangements with Phadia, Sweden and Novartis, Switzerland; and has grants/research support from the Swiss National Research Foundation, European Union, and Kuhne-Foundation. E. von Mutius has consultant arrangements with GlaxoSmithKline and UCB and is employed by Ludwig Maximilian University Munich. B. Schaub has declared that she has no conflict of interest. |
Vol 117 - N° 5
P. 969-977 - mai 2006 Retour au numéroBienvenue sur EM-consulte, la référence des professionnels de santé.
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